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AUTHOR: 


SIME,  JAMES 


TITLE: 


HISTORY  OF  GERMANY 


PLACE: 


NEW  YORK 


DA  TE : 


1875 


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Sime,  James,  1843-1893.  j 

...  History  of  aormany  by  James  Sime,  m.  a.    Ed.  by   1 

Edward  A  Freeman,  d.  c.  l.    Edition  adapted  for  Amer-    j 

lean  readers.    New  York,  H.  Holt  and  company,  iffJAr.imb, 

2  p  1.,  iviii-xiv,  282  p.    17"°.     (Freeman's  historical  course  for  schools 
iSi) 


Restrictions  on  Use: 


1.  Germany—Hist.        i.  Freeman,  Edward  Augustus,  1823-1892,  ed. 


C77235 

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HISTORICAL    COURSE 
FOR  SCHOOLS 

£niT£0  By  E  AFPEEIVLllNT  D.CL. 

*  Tie 


!    ? 


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HISTORY  OF  GERMANY 

SIME 


I 


/ 


/ 


FREEMAN'S  HISTORICAL  COURSE  FOR  SCHOOLS. 


Historical  Course  for  Schools, 

EDITBD   BY 

Edward  A.  Freeman,  D.C.U 

i6ino,  cloth. 

The  object  of  this  series  is  to  put  forth  clear  and  correct  v'cws  of 
history  in  simple  language,  and  in  the  smallest  space  and  cheapest 
form  in  which  it  could  be  done.  It  is  hoped  in  time  to  take  in  short 
histories  of  all  the  chief  countries  ol  Europe  and  America,  giving 
the  resu'ts  of  the  latest  historical  researches  in  as  simple  a  form  at 
may  be.  All  the  volumes  are  prepared  under  the  supervision  of 
Mr.  Freeman. 

I.— GENERAL  SKETCH  OF  HISTORY, 

Uy  Edward  A.  Frkkman.     A  new  edition  in  larger  type,  with  ;^n 
Index  and  i6  Historical  Maps  .        •        .        .        $i-40 

II.— HISTORY  OF  ENGLAND. 
By  Edith  Thompson $i.oo 

III.— HISTORY  OF  SCOTLAND. 
Bv  Margarbt  Macarthur $x.oo 

IV.— HISTORY  OF  ITALY. 
By  thb  Rev.  W.  Hunt,  M.A ^i.co 

v.— HISTORY  OF  GERMANY, 
By  James  Sime fi.oo 

VI.— HISTORY  OF    THE   UNITED   STATES, 

By  J.  A.  DoYi-E. 
With  Maps  and  revisions,  by  Francis  A.   Walker.         .        ^i.as 

VII.— HISTORY  OF  FRANCE, 

By  the  Rev.  J.  R,  Grene,  M.A.        .         .         (In  fref>aration.) 

VIII,— HISTORY  OF  GREECE, 

By  J.  Annan  Bryce,  B.A.  ,        .        ,        iln preparatwm.'} 


HISTORY 


OF 


GERMANY 


BY 


JAMES   SIME,   M.A. 

EDITED   BY 

Edward    A.    Freeman,    D.C.L. 

Edition  adapted  for  American  Readers 


I  < 


>    '  »  »    •     • 
»    »  ,  •   •  •» 


>  >      t      •   I  •  • 


>i   ••..••    ••••• 


NEW  YORK,  ,     .....  .    . 

HENRY   HOLT  AND''  GOMiPiJiNY    ': 


1875; 


JCalcred  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  ii74,  W 

HENRY  HOLT, 
la  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington, 


*   ."  >      .  .»   •     « 


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PREFACE. 


It  is  right  for  me  to  say  that  this  volume  of  the  series 
has  been  carefully  revised  by  Mr.  A.  W.  Ward,  than 
whom  England  can  supply  no  one  better  fitted  to  deal 
with  matters  of  German  History  of  all  dates.  Mr.  Ward 
must  be  understood  as  guaranteeing  only  the  general 
accuracy  of  the  narrative.  In  other  respects  the  volume 
falls  under  the  same  rules  as  its  fellows.  As  I  have 
already  said  in  the  Preface  to  the  History  of  England, 
this  volume,  like  the  others,  is  strictly  the  work  of  its 
own  author,  subject  only  to  the  requirement  of  a  general 
agreement  in  form  and  treatment  with  the  other  volumes 
of  the  series. 

EDWARD  A.  FREEMAN. 


SOMERLEAZE,  WELLS, 
Fibruaty  iilhf  1874, 


'Ii 


CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  L 

rAcfl 

ANCIENT  GERMANY ,     ^    .     •     .       I 

CHAPTER  11. 

THE  GERMANS  AND  THE  ROMANS II 

CHAPTER  III. 

THE  FRANKS •     .     •     .      l6 

CHAPTER  IV. 

THE   MAYORS   OF  THE   PALACE,  AND  DUKES   OF  THE 

FRANKS 27 

CHAPTER  V. 

CHARLES  THE  GREAT 32 

CHAPTER  VI. 

/THE  LATER   KARLINGS *     •      37 

CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  SAXON  EMPERORS 43 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE   FRANCONIAN   EMPERORS 58 


VIII 


CONTENTS, 


CHAPTER  IX. 

FAGB 

THE  HOHENSTAUFEN  EMPERORS 7^ 

CHAPTER  X 
SOVEREIGNS  OF  DIFFERENT  HOUSES 94 

CHAPTER  XI. 
THE  LUXEMBURG  EMPERORS IQ4 

CHAPTER  Xn. 
EMPERORS  OF  THE  HOUSE  OF  AUSTRIA    .     •     .     .'.113 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
CHARLES  V. — ^THE  REFORMATION       .......   I28 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

THE  THIRTY  YEARS'  WAR I46 

CHAPTER  XV. 

WARS  WITH   FRANCE 162 

CHAPTER  XVI.  \ 

FREDERICK  THE  GREAT •     .    ™ 

CHAPTER  XVII.  \ 

THE    FALL   OF   THE    EMPIRE  AND    OF  THE  KINGDOM        1 
OF  GERMANY I9J 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

THE  STRUGGLE  WITH  BUONAPARTE 204 

CHAPTER  XIX. 
REVOLUTIONARY  MOVEMENTS  .     .     .     , 223 

CHAPTER  XX. 
RECENT  EVENTS 243 


(* 


CHRONOLOGICAL  TABLE. 

B.C. 

Caesar  defeats  Ariovistus 5° 

Drusus  in  Germany '^*9 

A.D. 

Defeat  of  Varus ^ 

Arminius  and  Germanicus ^4-i6 

The  Marcomannic  War 167-180 

Confederations  of  tribes  formed 200-300 

Chlodwig 482-511 

Battle  of  Testri ^^7 

Charles  Martel  defeats  the  Arabs 73 1 

Winfrith  appointed  to  the  See  of  Mainz    ...  745 

Pippin  the  Short  crowned  King 753 

Charles  the  Great 768-814 

Charles  is  crowned  Emperor ^oo 

Lewis  tlie  Pious 814-840 

Treaty  of  Verdun ^^3 

The  later  Karlings 843-911 

Conrad  1 9ii-9i8 

The  Saxon  Emperors 919-1024 

Henry  1 919-936 

Henry  I.  defeats  the  Hungarians 933 

Otto  1 936-973 

Otto  L  defeats  the  Hungarians 955 


CHRONOLOGICAL  TABLE, 


Otto  I.  is  crowned  Emperor 

Otto  II.  and  Otto  III 

Henry  II 

The  Franconian  Emperors 

Conrad  II 

Conrad  II.  is  crowned  King  of  Burgundy      • 

Henry  III 

General  Peace  proclaimed 

Henry  IV 

Henry  IV.  at  Canossa 

Henry  V. 

The  Concordat  of  Worms 

Lothar  of  Saxony •    .    .    .    . 

The  Hohenstaufen  Emperors 

Conrad  III 

Frederick  Barbarossa •    .    • 

Humihation  of  Henry  the  Lion 

Henry  VI 

Kings  Philip  and  Otto 

Frederick  II 

The  Teutonic  Order  conquers  Pnissia  .    .    . 
Conrad  IV.  and  William  of  Holland    ,    .    . 

The  Interregnum 

Rudolf  of  Habsburg 

King  Adolf 

Albert  of  Austria    .    •    •    • 

Henry  VII 

Lewis  IV. 

Frederick  the  Fair 

Battle  of  Morgarten  Pass 

The  First  Electoral  League     ....•• 

The  Luxemburg  Emperors 

Charles  IV 


A.D. 

962 

973-J 

[003 

1003  ] 

1024 

1024- ] 

[I25 

1024- ] 

[O39 

[O32 

1039-] 

1056 

f043 

1056- ] 

1106 

[077 

1106-1 

[125 

[122 

1125-] 

ti37 

1137-] 

[254 

1137-] 

1152 

1153-1 

[190 

1 180 

1 190-1 

1 197 

1197-] 

1215 

1215-] 

[250 

1230- 

1260 

1250- 

r256 

1256-] 

[273 

1273-] 

[291 

1292- 

[298 

1298- 

J  308 

1308- 

1313 

1314-1 

'347 

1314-1 

'330 

1315 

'338 

1347-1 

1437 

1347-1 

1378 

CHRONOLOGICAL  TABLE. 


XI 


A.D. 

The  Golden  Bull ^35^ 

Wenceslaus 1378-U00 

Battle  of  Sempach ^386 

Rupert  of  the  Palatinate 1400-1410 

Sigmund 1410-1437 

The  Council  of  Constanz 1414-1418 

John  Huss  burned ^4-15 

Frederick  of  Hohenzollern  receives  the  T^Iark  of 

Brandenburg ^4^5 

The  Council  of  Basel I43i-i443 

Albert  II 1438-1439 

Frederick  III i44o-i493 

Peace  of  Thorn ^^66 

The  Archduke    Maximilian  marries    Mary  of 

Burgundy '477 

Maximilian  I I493-I5i9 

Perpetual  Public  Peace  proclaimed 1495 

The  Imperial  Chamber  established 1495 

Maximilian  I.  takes  the  title  of  "  Emperor  Elect"  1 508 

Germany  divided  into  Circles 1512 

Charles  V. i520-'556 

Beginning  of  the  Reformation 15^7 

Luther  before  the  Diet  of  Worms 1521 

Albert  of  Brandenburg  becomes  Duke  of  Prussia  1 525 

The  Archduke    Ferdinand   becomes    King  of 

Bohemia  and  Hungary 1526 

The  Augsburg  Confession i53o 

Religious  Peace  of  Niirnberg 1532 

The  Schmalkaldic  War ^546 

Battle  of  Muhlbcrg ^547 

The  Interim ^548 

The  Elector  Maurice  marches  against  Charles  V.  1552 

Henry  II.  ef  France  seizes  MeU,  Verdun,  and  Toul  1 55^ 


I 


XII 


CHRONOLOGICAL  TABLE. 


CHRONOLOGICAL  TABLE, 


XIII 


A.D. 

Religious  Peace  of  Augsburg  .    ..,,,.  iccr 

Abdication  of  Charles  V. icc(i 

Ferdinand! 1556-1564 

Maximilian  II 1564-1576 

^"^0^^^^ 1576-1612 

The  Letter  of  Majesty j^og 

The  Elector  of  Brandenburg  becomes  Duke  of 

Prussia •         ,5,j 

^^"^^^ 1612-1619 

Beginning  of  the  Thirty  Years' War     ....  161 8 

The  Winter  King ,6j^ 

Defeat  of  the  Bohemians 1620 

The  Danish  War 1624-1629 

Wallenstein  raises  an  army 1626 

Gustavus  Adolphus  in  Germany 1630-1632 

Battle  of  Liitzen ,5-,2 

Murder  of  Wallenstein ,634 

Ferdinand  III 1637-1657 

Peace  of  Westphalia 15.3 

Leopold  1 1658-1705 

Treaty  of  Welau jgc- 

Battle  of  Fehrbellin .'  ,57^ 

Peace  of  Nimwegen j^^g 

Strassburg  seized  by  Lewis  XIV 1681 

The  Turks  besiege  Vienna 1683 

Peace  of  Rysvvick ,5q- 

Frederick  L,  King  of  Prussia 1701-1713 

The  War  of  the  Spanish  Succession     ....  1701-1714 

Battle  of  Blenheim. ,704 

Joseph  1 1705-1711 

Charles  VI 1711-1740 

Peace  of  Rastatt 171^ 

I^eace  of  Baden 171^ 


I 


\ 


A.D. 

Frederick  William  L  of  Prussia 17 14-1740 

Maria  Theresa 1740-1780 

Frederick  1 1,  of  Prussia .    •    •    • 1740-1786 

The  First  Siiesian  War 1740- 1742 

Charles  VII 1742-1745 

The  Second  Siiesian  War 1744-1745 

Francis  1 1745-1765 

The  Seven  Years'  War. 1756-1763 

Treaty  of  Hubertusburg 1763 

Joseph  II 1765-1790 

The  First  Partition  of  Poland 1773 

League  formed  by  Frederick  II 1785 

Frederick  William  I L  of  Prussia 1786- 1797 

Leopold  II 1790-1792 

First  War  of  the  Revolution 1792 

Francis  II 1792-1806 

The  Second  Partition  of  Poland 1793 

The  Third  Partition  of  Poland 1795 

Peace  of  Basel 1795 

Peace  of  Campo  Formio I797 

Frederick  William  III.  of  Prussia 1797- 1840 

Congress  at  Rastatt 179^ 

War  with  France I799 

Battle  of  Hohenlinden 1800 

Peace  of  Lundville 1801 

Buonaparte  seizes  Hanover 1803 

Battle  of  Austerlitz 1805 

Peace  of  Pressburg 1805 

The  Confederation  of  the  Rhine 1806 

Francis  II.  resigns  the  Imperial  Crown     .    .    •  1806 

Battle  of  Jena 1806 

Peace  of  Tilsit 1807 

Battle  of  Wagram .  1809 


XIV 


CHRONOLOGICAL  TABLE, 


A.D. 

Peace  of  Schonbrunn 1809 

Prussia  and  Russia  declare  war  against  France  181 3 

Austria  and  Sweden  join  the  Allies 18 13 

Battle  of  the  Katzbach 1813 

Battle  of  Leipzig ,  1813 

First  Peace  of  Paris ,  1814 

The  Congress  of  Vienna 1814 

Battle  of  Waterloo 1815 

Second  Peace  of  Paris 1815 

The  German  Confederation 181 5 

A  Customs  Union  proposed 1828 

Death  of  Francis  I.  of  Austria 1835 

Ferdinand  I.  of  Austria 1835- 1848 

Frederick  William  IV.  of  Pnissia 1840-1861 

Popular  risings  in  Vienna  and  Berlin    ....  1848 

The  National  Assembly  in  Frankfurt   ....  1848 

War  with  Denmark 1848-1850 

The  Imperial  title  offered  to  Frederick  William  IV.  1849 

Constitutional  government  set  up  in  Prussia      .  1850 

The  Frankfurt  Diet  restored 1851 

William  I.  of  Prussia 1861 

War  with  Denmark 1863 

Alliance  between  Prussia  and  Italy 1866 

Battle  of  Koniggriitz 1866 

Peace  of  Prague 1 866 

The  North  Cerman  Confederation 1866 

Customs  Parliament  meets  in  Berlin     ....  1868 

France  declares  war  against  Prussia     ....  1870 

Battle  of  Sedan 1870 

Surrender  of  Metz 1870 

William  I.  of  Prussia  declared  Emperor  in  Germany     1871 

Surrender  of  Paris •    .    .    •  187 1 

Peace  of  Frankfurt 1871 


HISTORY  OF  GERMANY. 


CHAPTER  I. 


ANCIENT  GERMANY. 


Geographical  character  of  Germany  ( i ) — central  position  ;  relatiom 
of  the  Germans  to  their  neighbours  {2)— the  words  "  Qetitsch  " 
or  **Duich,"  and  *' German"  ('i)—High  and  Low  Dutch  (4)— 
the  country  in  the  time  of  Tacittis  {$) — ancient  German  Tribes 
(6) — the  Ingaei'ones^  Istaevones^  and  Herminones  (7) — char- 
acter of  the  people  {%)— Nobles^  Freemen,  Slaves,  and  Liti  {9)— 
the  Wergeld  {\o)— Marriage  ;  position  of  the  wife;  authority  of 
the  father;  uncles;  quarrels  of  freemen  adopted  by  relatives  {\\) — 
Villages;  the  land ;  Hundreds  {12)— Chiefs  ;  the  Comitatus  {13) 
— meetings  of  the  Village,  the  Hundred,  and  the  Tribe  (14) — 
all  freemen  armed ;  their  armour;  the  Herzog;  mode  of  attack 
(15) — the  German  religion  (16). 

I.  Geographical  character  of  Germany. — Germany,  or 
Dcutschland^  occupies  a  large  part  of  central  Europe. 
Speaking  roughly,  it  now  reaches  from  the  Alps  to  the 
Baltic  and  the  North  Sea^  and  from  the  valleys  of  the 
Rhine  and  the  Maes  to  the  Danube  as  far  as  the  March 
and  the  J/wr,  and  to  the  Prosna  and  the  Lower  Niemen. 
The  country  is  mountainous  in  the  south,  hilly  in  the 
centre,  and  flat  in  the  north,  where  it  forms  part  of  the 
great  plain  which   takes  in  the  whole   of  north-eastern 

A 


ANCIENT  GERMANY, 


[chap. 


I] 


GERMAN  TRIBES. 


Europe.  The  western  part  of  this  plain  takes  in  the 
country  between  the  Teutoburg  Wood  and  the  North  Sea. 
As  it  passes  eastwards  it  widens  till  it  reaches  from  the 
Erz  and  Riesen  moimtains  to  the  Baltic.  A  part  of  South 
Germany  slopes  towards  the  east,  and  is  watered  by  the 
Datiube;  but  the  general  slope  of  the  country  is  towards 
the  north.  Among  the  rivers  flowing  northwards  are  tne 
Rhine,  the  Ems,  the   Weser,  the  Elbe,  the  Oder,  and  the 

Vistula. 

2.  Central  position  of  Germany.— Germany  has  varied 
very  much  in  extent  at  different  times.  This  is  due  partly 
to  the  fact  that  it  has  no  clearly-marked  natural  boundaries 
on  the  east  and  west,  but  chiefly  to  the  peculiarity  ot  its 
position.  It  is  the  central  country  of  Europe.  Being  sur- 
rounded*by  most  of  the  leading  nations  of  the  Continent,  the 
Germans  have  been  involved,  more  than  any  other  people, 
in  the  general  history  of  Europe.  Of  all  their  neighbours, 
the  Scandinavians  are  most  nearly  allied  to  the  Germans. 
Both  are  branches  of  the  Teutonic  race.  But  the  Germans 
are  also  connected,  although  not  so  closely,  with  the  other 
surrounding  peoples.  All,  if  we  except  the  Magyars  or 
Hungarians,  who  are  Turanians,  belong  to  the  great  Aryan 

family. 

3.  Names  of  the  people.— The  Germans  call  themselves 
Deutschen.  We  formerly  used  the  word  Dutch  in  the  same 
wide  sense,  but  now  usually  confine  it  to  the  people  of 
Holland.  Deutsch  or  Dutch  is  the  modern  form  of  Theoiisc 
(Theod,  people),  which  first  came  into  use  in  the  ninth 
century.  The  word  German  is  probably  of  Celtic  origin. 
It  is  believed  to  have  been  first  applied  to  a  particular  tribe, 
and  then  to  the  race  to  which  the  tribe  belonged. 

4.  High  and  Low  Dutch.— The  Germans  or  Dutch  are 
divided  into  two  great  :  r  jups,  the  High  and  the  Low.  The 
Low  Dutch  live  by  the  mouths  of  the  rivers  flowing  irto 


\% 


the  North  Sea,  the  High  Dutch  in  the  inland  and  moun- 
tainous parts  of  Germany.  They  are  branches  of  the  same 
]>eople  ;  but  they  differ  a  good  deal  in  character  and  cus- 
toms, and,  above  all,  in  language.  On  the  Continent  the 
only  Low- Dutch  language  which  remains  the  organ  of  an 
important  living  literature  is  spoken  in  HoUand.  The 
educated  classes  of  the  country,  or  group  of  countries, 
which  we  now  call  Germany,  speak  and  write  High- 
Dutch. 

5.  Ancient  Germany.— Our  chief  authority  for  the  con- 
dition of  ancient  Gennany  is  the  ^' Gennania"  of  Tacitus, 
written  in  the  year  98  A.D.  At  that  time  the  greater 
part  of  the  country  was  covered  by  forests,  in  which  were 
bears,  wolves,  buffaloes,  elks,  and  other  wild  animals.  The 
climate  was  damp  and  foggy  ;  and  in  winter  the  cold  seems 
to  have  been  keener,  and  to  have  lasted  longer  than  at 
present.  The  soil  was  in  many  places  marshy  ;  but  much 
of  it  was  very  fertile.  There  were  many  flocks  and  herds, 
generally  of  a  small  breed. 

6.  German  Tribes. — The  ancient  Germans  were  divided 
into  many  different  tribes.  These  sometimes  united  among 
themselves  for  purposes  of  attack  or  defence  ;  but  they  were 
politically  independent,  each  being  separated  from  the 
others  by  tolerably  well-marked  boundaries.  On  the  right 
bank  of  the  Rhine,  beginning  with  the  country  now  called 
Hessen  and  passing  northwards,  there  were,  besides  various 
others,  the  Chatti,  the  Tcncteri  and  Usipetes,  the  Sicambri, 
the  Marsi,  and  the  Bructeri.  The  Frisians,  Chauci,  and 
Saxons  occupied  the  coasts  from  the  Rhine  to  the  Elbe. 
The  territory  of  the  Chcrusci,  one  of  the  bravest  of  German 
tribes,  took  in  the  Harz  mountains  and  the  country  around 
as  far  as  the  Alter,  the  Wcser,  the  Werra,  the  Elbe,  and 
the  Saal.  The  country  from  the  Danube  and  the  Middle 
Rhine    northwards    to    the     Baltic    was    held    by    tribes 


!1 


ANCIENT  GERMANY. 


[chap. 


L] 


CLASSES  OF  MEN, 


connected  closely  enough  to  be  known  by  the  common 
name  of  the  Suevi.  First  among  the  Suevi  were  the  Sent- 
nones,  stretching  from  the  southern  part  of  what  is  now 
Brandenburg  to  the  Riesen  mountains.  The  Longobardi, 
or,  as  they  were  afterwards  called,  the  Lombards,  were 
settled  on  the  banks  of  the  Lower  Elbe.  The  Marcomanni 
were  neighbours  of  the  Chatti,  between  the  Rhine,  the 
Main,  and  the  Danube  ;  and  further  to  the  south-east  were 
the  Quadi.  There  were  other  Suevic  tribes ;  but  it  is 
these  with  whom  history  has  most  to  do.  It  was  long 
believed  that  the  Goths  were  the  original  stock  from  which 
all  Germans  had  sprung  ;  but  they  held  to  other  Germans 
merely  the  relation  of  sister  tribes,  and  their  language  is 
more  nearly  akin  to  the  Low. than  to  the  High  German. 
They  occupied  the  banks  of  the  Lower  Vistula.  The 
Vandals,  Burgundians,  and  i?//^//,  all  kindred  tribes,  were 
scattered  to  the  west  of  the  Vistula,  along  the  shores  of 
the  Baltic.  The  Gothic  tribes  soon  passed  altogether  out 
of  German  history,  and  had  probably  begun  even  i: 
Tacitus'  time  to  separate  from  their  kinsmen.  It  must  not 
be  forgotten  that  at  an  early  period  various  German  tribes 
crossed  the  Rhine  in  search  of  new  settlements.  At  the 
time  of  C.  Julius  Ccssar  a  large  part  of  the  left  bank  was 
held  by  Germans,  among  whom  the  Ubii  were  distinguished. 
The  Batavians,  who  are  said  to  have  sprung  from  the 
Chatti,  held  the  island  formed  by  the  two  branches  of  the 
Lower  Rhine. 

7.  Groups  of  Tribes,— These  tribes  did  not  call  them- 
selves by  any  common  name  ;  but,  according  to  Tacitus, 
three  great  groups  were  recognised— the  Ingaevones,  the 
Istaevone^,  and  the  He rtni nones.  The  first  took  in  all  the 
tribes  on  the  coasts  of  the  North  Sea,  the  second  those 
holding  the  Rhine  country,  and  the  third  those  in  the 
centre  of  Germany.    These  groups  were  believed  to  have 


sprung  from  the  three  sons  of  Mannus,  the  first  man,  the 
son  of  the  god  TJmisto.  The  division  had  no  political 
importance  ;  but  it  had  probably  some  real  meaning,  for  it 
reappears  in  another  form  in  later  history. 

8.  Character  of  the  people.— The  Germans  were  gener- 
ally tall  and  strong.  They  could  be  fierce  and  cruel ;  but 
they  were  brave,  tmthful,  simple  in  their  manners,  and 
hospitable.  They  celebrated  in  songs  the  great  deeds 
of  their  forefathers,  and  were  usually  ready  to  die  rather 
than  give  up  freedom.  Although  an  agricultural  people, 
the  occupations  they  most  delighted  in  were  war  and 
hunting.  Their  chief  faults  were  indolence,  drunkenness, 
and  excessive  gambling.  They  left  the  tilling  of  the 
fields  and  all  other  peaceful  work  as  much  as  possible  to 
women  and  to  men  incapable  of  bearing  arms. 

9.  Classes  of  men.— The  ancient  Germans,  like  other 
Aryan  peoples,  were  divided  into  two  great  classes,  the 
nobles,  and  the  common  freemejt.  The  fornier  were  the 
Eorls,  the  latter  the  Ceorls  of  the  ancient  English.  The 
nobles  were  usually  richer  than  the  freemen,  but  their 
position  did  not  altogether  depend  on  their  wealth.  What 
their  special  rights  and  privileges  were,  we  do  not  know  ; 
but  they  were  held  in  high  esteem,  and  took  a  foremost 
place  in  public  life.  The  freemen  formed  the  great  body 
of  the  people.  Each  was  an  independent  member  of  the 
community,  and  enjoyed  equal  rights  with  his  fellows.  Both 
freemen  and  nobles  had  slaves.  This  class  consisted  for  the 
most  part  of  prisoners  of  war  and  their  offspring,  and  of 
those  condemned  to  slavery  on  account  of  some  crime.  They 
were  usually  well  treated  ;  but  they  were  the  absolute  pro- 
perty of  their  masters,  and  had  no  redress  against  injustice. 
They  were  not  allowed,  under  any  circumstances,  to  bear 
arms.  Between  the  freemen  and  the  slaves  was  a  peculiar 
class,   consisting    partly    of   free^lmen,    and    called    Litu 


ANCIENT  GERMANY. 


[chap. 


M 


CHIEFS.     THE  COMITATUS. 


The  Liti  were  in  no  sense  any  one's  property,  and  they 
had  certain  rights  which  they  could  enforce  ;  but  they 
had  no  share  in  the  political  life  of  the  community.  They 
could  not  possess  land.  They  could  only  hold  it  of  some 
master,  with  whom  they  were  obliged  to  share  the  produce. 
They  were  thus  neither  freemen  nor  slaves,  but  a  class  apart 

la  The  Wergeld. — If  a  noble,  a  freeman,  or  one  of  the 
Liti  was  killed,  the  murderer  was  not  put  to  death.  He  had 
to  pay  a  fine,  which  was  in  later  times  called  the  IVergeld, 
The  amount  of  the  Wergeld  varied  amongst  different  tribes  ; 
but  the  Wergeld  of  a  noble  was  always  greater  than  that 
of  a  freeman,  as  a  freeman's  was  greater  than  that  of  one 
of  the  Liti. 

II.  The  Family. — The  ancient  Germans  did  not  marry 
till  their  physical  and  mental  powers  were  fully  developed. 
The  bridegroom  did  not  exactly  purchase  the  bride  ;  but 
on  the  day  of  their  marriage  he  brought  her  a  valu- 
able gift,  which  she  kept  as  her  own  property.  The  wife 
was  subject  to  the  husband  ;  but  her  position  was  not  a 
degraded  one.  She  was  her  husband's  companion  and 
friend,  and  often  went  with  him  on  distant  warlike 
expeditions.  She  was  expected  to  know  the  use  of 
arms,  and  was  usually  brave  and  virtuous.  The  clan 
was  not,  in  the  time  of  Tacitus,  the  foundation  of  society ; 
but  family  relations  were  of  great  importance.  The 
father  had  supreme  authority  over  his  children.  He 
had  even  the  power,  in  extreme  cases,  of  putting  them 
to  death.  Uncles,  especially  on  the  mother^s  side,  were 
looked  up  to  with  deep  respect.  When  a  freeman  died, 
his  children  were  protected  by  their  relatives,  until  they 
were  able  to  defend  themselves.  A  freeman's  quarrels 
were  always  taken  up  by  his  relatives  ;  and  if  he  was 
killed,  it  was  their  duty  to  see  that  the  Wergeld,  which  wai 
divided  amongst  the  family,  was  paid. 


\/ 


12.    Villages    and    Hundreds.— Theie    were    no    cities 
in    ancient    Germany.      In    some    parts    of  the    country 
every  freeman  lived  apart    with    his   family  on  his   own 
land  ;   but  the  great   majority  lived   in  villages.      These 
villages  were  made  up  of  a  number  of  huts,  each  hut  stand- 
ing apart  from  the  rest,  surrounded  by  a  piece  of  ground. 
The    land    around   a    village    originally  belonged   to  the 
community,  and  much  of  it  remained  common  property  ; 
but  from  an  early  period  grants  of  land  had  been  made 
to  individuals,  and   the  number  of  those  who  held  land 
as  their  private  property  always  tended  to  increase.     An 
undefined   number  of   villages   formed  what   was    called 
a  Hundred.    Whether  the  Gau  was  a  name  for  the  entire 
land  of  a  tribe,  or  was  merely  a  division  taking  in  several 
Hundreds,    is    uncertain.       Perhaps    the    name    did    not 
arise  till   a   later    period.      At   all   events,   the   Hundred 
was  the  really  important  division,  for  traces  of  it  are  to  be 
found  among  all  German  peoples. 

13.  Chiefs.  The  Comitatus.— Every  village  and  Hun- 
dred had  its  own  Chuf,  elected  by  the  freemen.  Higher 
than  the  chiefs  of  the  Hundreds  and  villages  was  the 
chief  of  the  tribe,  appointed  in  the  same  way.  Some 
tribes  had  Kiftgs;  but  even  Kings  were  elected,  although 
always  from  some  particular  noble  family  believed  to  have 
sprung  from  the  gods.  The  chiefs  of  the  Hundreds  formed 
what  Tacitus  calls  ihQ  princes  of  a  tribe,  ^nd  acted  as  a 
Council  to  the  King  or  other  supreme  chief.  By  far  the 
most  important  right  of  a  chief  was  the  power  to  form 
a  Comitatus  or  Gefolge—\h2X  is,  to  gather  round  him  a 
body  of  men  devoted  to  his  service.  The  princes  vied 
with  each  other  in  having  large  numbers  of  followers.  The 
men  swore  to  be  always  faithful  to  their  lord;  and  to 
be  untrue  to  this  oath  was  thought  the  worst  possible 
crime.      In    return  for  their  services,  the  chief  provided 


8 


ANCIENT  GERMANY, 


[chap. 


his  men  with  war-horses,  armour,  and  food  ;  and  if  the 
tribe  was  not  at  war,  he  often  gave  them  fresh  opportunities 
of  distinguishing  themselves  by  taking  part  in  the  wars  of 
other  tribes. 

14.  Meetings  of  the  people.  —  Important  as  was  the 
position  of  the  chiefs  in  ancient  Germany,  their  powe^ 
was  comparatively  limited.  Above  all  chiefs  were  the 
Meetings  of  the  people.  Even  the  village  had  its  Meeting; 
•but  the  really  important  Meetings  were  those  of  the 
Hundred  and  of  the  tribe.  These  Meetings  were  not, 
like  modern  Parliaments,  representative.  All  freemen 
had  a  right  to  attend  them.  The  Meetings  of  the  village 
and  of  the  Hundred  did  not  concern  themselves  with  the 
affairs  of  the  tribe.  These  came  before  the  Meeting  of  the 
whole  people.  It  was  in  this  general  Meeting  that  the 
chiefs  were  elected — not  only  the  King  or  other  chief  of 
the  tribe,  but  the  chiefs  of  the  various  Hundreds.  Here 
also  the  young  freeman  received  from  his  father  or  some 
prince  the  arms  which  were  the  symbol  that  he  had  attained 
to  a  position  of  independence  in  the  tribe.  All  difficult 
cases  of  justice  were  decided  by  the  Meeting  of  the  tribe  ; 
it  also  declared  war  and  concluded  peace,  and  sanctioned 
the  occasional  distant  expeditions  of  the  chiefs  with  their 
followers.  When  questions  of  unusual  difficulty  were  to 
come  before  the  Meeting,  they  were  discussed  beforehand 
by  the  King  or  other  chief  and  the  princes  of  the  tribe  ;  but 
the  ultimate  decision  lay  with  the  people  themselves. 
The  common  freem?n  rarely  took  a  leading  part  in  the 
deliberations.  The  chiefs  laid  their  proposals  before  the 
people  in  plain  terms,  stating  the  arguments  on  each 
side.  If  the  freemen  did  not  agree  with  their  chiefs, 
they  expressed  their  opinion  by  cries  of  dissent  ;  they 
signified  their  approval  of  a  proposal  by  clashing  their 
armour. 


1.] 


THE  ARMY, 


15.  The  Army. — The  army  was  not  something  different 
from  the  people  ;  it  was  the  people  themselves.  Eveiy 
freeman  bore  anus,  and  might  at  any  moment  be  called 
into  active  service.  Spears  were  the  weapons  most 
commonly  used.  Each  warrior  had  also  a  shield  long 
enough  to  cover  almost  the  whole  body.  The  cavalry 
had  no  other  armour  ;  but  those  who  fought  on  foot  had 
missile  weapons,  which  they  could  hurl  to  a  great  distance. 
They  sometimes  used  battle-axes  and  clubs  ;  swords  were 
little  known.  The  cavalry  never  used  saddles.  The 
different  companies  were  not  made  up  of  men  chosen  at 
random  ;  the  freemen  of  each  Hundred  kept  together, 
and  the  minor  divisions  were  composed  of  kinsmen  and 
friends.  Each  prince  commanded  his  own  Hundred. 
The  supreme  command  was  undertaken  by  the  king  or 
chief  of  the  tribe,  or  by  a  Herzog  elected  by  the  freemen. 
If  several  tribes  united  to  carry  on  a  war,  the  Herzog, 
or  commander-in-chief,  was  elected  by  the  princes.  The 
line  of  battle  was  arranged  in  the  form  of  a  wedge,  the 
bravest  and  most  experienced  being  put  in  front.  Cavalry 
and  infantry  were  so  placed  that  they  helped  to  protect 
each  other.  When  about  to  make  an  attack,  all  joined 
in  a  sort  of  chant,  putting  their  shields  to  their  mouths 
to  make  the  sound  more  terrible.  To  throw  away  their 
shields  on  the  field  of  battle  was  in  the  higlicst  degree 
disgraceful.  Those  guilty  of  this  crime  often  killed 
themselves,  being  unable  to  bear  the  contempt  of  their 
kinsmen. 

16.  Religion. — The  Germans,  like  their  Scandinavian 
kinsmen,  inherited  the  common  Aryan  religion,  and  gave 
it  forms  adapted  to  their  own  modes  of  thought  and  feeling. 
Their  chief  god  was  Wodan.  Donar^  or  Thor^  the  god 
of  thunder,  was  also  very  powerful.  The  gods  were  not 
worshipped  in  temples,  but  in  sacred  groves.       Sacrifices 


lO 


ANCIENT  GERMANY. 


[CH.  I.) 


were  offered  to  them,  sometimes  even  human  sacrifices; 
and  their  will  was  found  out  by  means  of  lots,  the  flight 
of  birds,  and  the  neighing  of  sacred  horses.  The  Germans 
believed  that  the  gods  took  a  direct  interest  in  human 
affairs,  and  that  in  a  future  life  they  rewarded  brave  men 
and  punished  cowards. 


CHAPTER  II. 


THE  GERMANS  AND  THE  ROMANS. 

Arimnstus:  C.  Julius  Cctsar;  Germans  in  the  Roman  service  (l) 
—Dntsus  tries  to  conquer  Germany  {2)— Tiberius  in  Germany: 
Arminius  defeats  Varus  {-^—Germanicus  and  Arminius  (4) 
—Maroboduus;  defeated  by  Arminius;  death  of  Arminius ;  {5) 
Claudius  Civilis  rebels  against  the  Romans;  encouraged  by 
Velleda;  is  defeated  {(i)^the  Marcomannic  War  (7). 

I.  Ariovistus.  C.  Julius  Caesar.— The  first  German  name 
that  appears  in  history  is  that  of  Ariovistus,  a  Suevic  king 
whose  fame  had  spread  beyond  the  bounds  of  Germany. 
The  Sequani  and  ^diii,  two  Gallic  tribes,  having  fallen 
out,  the  former  begged  this  great  chief  to  come  to  their 
aid.  He  did  so,  but  in  the  end,  in  60  B.C.,  conquered  both 
tribes.  He  thus  made  himself  master  of  the  whole  terri- 
tory between  the  Upper  Rhine  and  the  Loire.  The  Romans 
at  first  treated  him  as  a  friend  ;  but,  in  the  year  58  B.C., 
C.  Julius  Ccesar^  to  whom  the  Gauls  had  appealed  for  help, 
marched  against  him,  and  defeated  him.  Caesar  conquered 
the  Germans  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Rhine  as  completely  as 
the  Celtic  inhabitants  of  Gaul.  He  twice  crossed  the  Rhine ; 
but  he  did  not  do  much  harm  either  time.  He  formed  a 
high  opinion  of  German  bravery,  and  got  many  warriors 
to  enter  the  Roman  service.  From  this  time  it  became 
conm\on  for  Germans  to  serve  as  Roman  soldiers  ;  and  in 
the  end  they  formed  by  far  the  best  part  of  the  Roman 
army. 


f 


13 


THE  GERMANS  AND  THE  ROMANS.      [chap. 


2.  Drusus. — About  the  beginning  of  the  Christian  rera 
the  Romans  tried  hard  to  make  Germany  a  Roman  pro- 
vince. The  first  general  who  made  the  attempt  was  Drusiis^ 
the  step-son  of  the  Emperor  Augustus.  He  cut  a  canal 
between  the  Rhine  and  the  Yssel,  and  in  the  year  12  B.C. 
sailed  along  the  coasts  of  the  North  Sea.  He  defeated  the 
Bructeri,  who  had  collected  a  fleet  in  the  Ems  for  the  pur- 
pose of  opposing  him.  Drusus  afterwards  made  three 
different  expeditions  into  the  heart  of  Germany.  In  the 
year  9  B.C.  he  defeated  the  Chatti  with  their  allies  the 
Marcotnanni^  and  advanced  as  far  as  the  Elbe.  On  his 
way  back  he  was  killed  by  a  fall  from  his  horse.  Had 
Drusus  lived,  he  would  probably  have  conquered  a  con- 
siderable part  of  Germany.  He  had  built  no  fewer  than 
fifty  fortresses  along  the  Rhine,  besides  others  in  different 
parts  of  the  country. 

3.  Tiberius.     Varus.     Arminius.— The  strujrgle  begun  by 
Drusus  was  carried  on  by  Tiberius.     In  8  B.C.  the  latter 
conquered  the  Tencteri  and  Usipetes.  The  Sicambri  bravely 
opposed  him  ;  but  having  got  their  chiefs  in  his  power  by 
treachery,  he  easily  overcame  the  people.     In  order  to  make 
them  harmless  for  the  future,  he  sent  about  40,000  of  them 
into   Gaul,   near   the   mouths   of  the    Rhine,   where    they 
remained  unwilling  subjects  of  Rome.     After  this  sevcu  1 
tribes  became  allies  of  the  Romans,  and  it  seemed  for  a 
time  as  if  Germany  were  soon,  like  Gaul,  to  form  part  of  the 
Roman  Empire.     It  was  the  foolish  conduct  of  Quiiiciiliu^ 
Vanis,    a    Roman  general,   that  kept   this  from   coming 
about.     Varus  came  to  Germany  in  the  year  6  A.D.,  and, 
fancying  that  the  people  were  thoroughly  subdued,  began  to 
rule  as  he  had  formerly  done  among  the  eastern  subjects  of 
Rome.     He  even  claimed  the  right  to  put  German  freemen 
to  death.     The  Germans  were  indignant  at  this  treatment, 
and  longed    to    throw    off   the    foreign    yoke.       At    last 


11.1 


GERMAN/CUS, 


13 


a   young    Cheruscan    chief,   called    Arminius,    who    had 
served   in    the    Roman    army,    and    had    been    made  a 
Roman   citizen    and    knight,    resolved    to    win    back  the 
freedom  of  his   people.       He    spoke   in   secret  with  the 
chiefs  of  his  own  and  other  tribes,  and  found  them  more 
than  willing  to  support  him.     When  everything  was  ready, 
Vams,  who  was  in  the  land  of  the  Cherusci,  not  far  from 
the  Weser,  was  told  that  a  tribe  in  the  north  had  revolted. 
At  the  head  of  a  large  army  he  at  once  set  out  to  punish 
the  rebels.     He  was  led,  with  his  legions,  into  the  depths  of 
the  Teutoburg  Wood.     Heavy  rains  had  been  falling  for 
some  time,  so  that  marching  was  difficult.     Suddenly,  when 
no  one  dreamed  of  danger,  the  Romans  looked  up,  and  saw 
that  the  wooded  heights  above  and  around   them  were 
covered  by   armed  men.      The  Germans  fiercely  avenged 
the  wrongs  they  had  suffered.      Of  the  whole  Roman  army 
scarcely  a  man  escaped.     Vams,  severely  wounded,  fell 
upon  his  sword  and  killed  himself. 

4.  Germanicus.— In    consequence    of    this    defeat,    the 
Romans  did  not  even    enter    Germany  for  some    years. 
But  when  Tiberius  became  Emperor,  Germanicus,  the  son 
of  Drusus,  tried  to  follow  in  the  steps  of  his  father.     In  the 
year    14  he   suddenly  attacked  the  Marsi,  a  tribe  on  the 
right  bank  of  the  Middle  Rhine,  and  defeated  them.     The 
neighbouring  tribes  at  once  rose  against  him,  and  compelled 
him  to  withdraw.     Next  year  he  returned,  and  was  joined 
by  many  Germans,  the  Chauci  being  especially  useful  allies. 
Arminius,  whose  wife  Thusnelda    had  been  sent  by  Ger- 
manicus as  a  prisoner  to  Rome,  hurried  through  the  land  of 
the  Cherusci  and  allied  tribes,  and  roused  the  people  against 
the   Romans.      He   attacked  the   Roman   cavalry    in  the 
Teutoburg  Wood,  where  Germanicus  halted  to  bury  the 
remains  of  the  warriors  who  had  fallen  five  years  before. 
The  Germans  gained  no  decided  victory,  but  Germanicui 


H 


THE  GERMANS  AND  THE  ROMANS.      [chap. 


Ill 


THE  MARCOMANNIC  WAR. 


15 


'Nl 


A 

t 


was  weakened,  and  felt  it  necessary  to  retreat.  In  the 
year  16,  he  put  forth  all  his  strength  against  the  Ger- 
mans, and  defeated  them  in  a  battle  near  Minden.  The 
Romans  claimed  the  victory  in  a  second  battle,  but  their 
losses  were  so  great  that  they  had  to  retreat  to  theii  ships. 
These  were  overtaken  by  a  violent  storm,  and  greater  part 
of  the  fleet  perished.  After  this  the  Romans  did  not  again 
try  to  conquer  Germany. 

5.  Maroboduus.     Death  of  Arminius. — Meanwhile,  a  new 
danger    had    arisen    within  Germany   itself.     After  being 
defeated  by  Drusus,  the  Marcomanni,  headed  by  their  chief 
Maroboduus^  had  wandered  eastwards  and  taken  possession 
of  the  country  now  called  Bohemia.     Maroboduus  became 
a  very  powerful  king,  and  conquered  the  leading  Suevic 
tribes.      He  might  have  brought  all  Germany  under  hi$ 
rule  ;  but  after  the  withdrawal  of  Germanicus,  Arminius 
made  war  on  him,  and  so  utterly  defeated  him  that  his 
kingdom  was  broken  up,  and  he  himself  had  to  seek  refuge 
in  Rome.     Arminius  thus  probably  saved  the  freedom  of 
the  Germans  a   second  time.     We  know   nothing   of  the 
last  years  of  Arminius.     In  the  year  21,  at  the  age  of  thirty- 
seven,  he  was  murdered.     He  was  a  true  hero,  to  whom 
the  whole  Teutonic  race  owes  a  debt  of  gratitude. 

6.  Claudius  Civilis.— In  the  year  69  the  Batavians  and 
the  Germans  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Rhine  rebelled  against 
the  Romans.  The  rebellion  was  headed  by  Claudius  Civilis^ 
a  Batavian  who  had  for  many  years  served  in  the  Roman 
army,  but  had  been  harshly  treated  by  the  Emperor  Nero. 
Some  Gallic  tribes  joined  him  ;  and  the  Bructeri  and  other 
Germans  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Rhine  gladly  sent  him 
aid.  A  Bructerian  maid,  Velleda,  who  lived  in  a  lonely 
tower  in  the  forests' near  the  Lippe,  and  was  looked  up  to 
as  a  prophetess,  encouraged  him  and  his  followers  by  high- 
sounding  promises.     For  a  time  Civilis  was  successful ;  but 


vj 


> 

S 
^ 


fortune  soon  turned.  The  Roman  general  Cerealis  twice 
defeated  him.  Civilis  still  held  out  for  a  time  ;  but  in  the 
end  the  Batavians  had  to  return  to  their  allegiance.  They 
were  not  asked  to  pay  tribute,  but  had  to  send  men  to  the 
Roman  army. 

7.  The  Marcomannic  War.— In  the  second  century 
there  were  new  wars  between  the  Romans  and  the  Germans, 
but  now  the  latter,  not  the  former,  were  the  aggressors. 
Of  these  wars  the  chief  was  the  Marcomannic  war,  carried 
on  by  Marcus  Aurelius  for  thirteen  years  against  a  vast 
body  of  Germans,  headed  by  the  Marcomanni  and  the 
Quadi^  and  joined  by  various  non-German  tribes.  Th3 
invasion  which  led  to  this  war  may  be  looked  on  as  the  first 
of  tliose  which  were  afterwards  to  break  up  the  Empire. 


[CH.   III.] 


GROUPS  OF  TRIBES. 


17 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  FRANKS. 

German  tribes  lecn'e  the  mother  country  {\)-^the  Alemanni ;  the 
Franks ;  the  Saxons  and  Frisians;  the  Thiringians ;  the  Ba^ 
varians  (2) — the  Franks  the  most  important  group  of  tribes ; 
the  Ripuarians  {3)— the  Saiian  Franks  (4) — King  Chlodio ; 
state  of  Society  among  the  Salians  about  ChloJio's  time  (5) — 
Merowig;  Chiideric  (6) — Chlodwig;  conquers  Gaul {•]) — becomes 
Christian  (8) — conquers  the  Alemanni;  unites  all  Frankish 
tribes  (<))— lands  seized  by  Chlodwig ;  allodial  and  fiscal  lands 
(10) — Chlodiaig's  successors  (ii)—po7ver  of  the  Mermvingian 
Kings  (12) — Gaus  and  Duchies ;  Dukes  and  Counts  (13) — 
Benefices  {l^)— Oncers  oftlu  royal  household  {i^), 

I.  Wanderings  of  German  Tribes.— Between  the  third 
and  the  sixth  centuries  great  changes  took  place  in  Ger- 
many. Whole  tribes  and  confederations  of  tribes  left  the 
mother  country  and  founded  powerful  kingdoms  else- 
where. The  Goths  were  the  first  to  set  the  example.  They 
pushed  towards  the  south-east.  In  the  fourth  century 
their  great  King  Eormenric  ruled  over  a  kingdom  reaching 
from  the  Baltic  to  the  Black  Sea.  This  kingdom  was 
broken  up  by  the  Huns,  to  whom  the  Enst  Goths  became 
for  a  time  subject,  while  the  West  Gol/is  crossed  the  Danube 
and  settled  within  Roman  territory.  Early  in  the  fifth 
century  the  Vandals,  the  Bitrgundians,  and  various  Suevic 
peoples  wandered  westwards  into  GauL  The  Suevi  and  the 
Vandals  entered  Spain,  and  conquered  it.     The  Vandals 


n 


I 


afterwards  founded  a  kingdom  in  Africa^  the  capital  of 
which  was  Carthag^e.  The  Burgundians  remained  in  Gaul, 
and  founded  a  kingdom  which  in  the  end  took  in  the  valley 
of  the  Rhone  and  the  Saone,  and  the  western  half  oi 
Helvetia.  These  tribes  were  followed  by  the  West  Goths, 
who  conquered  Spain  and  the  southern  part  of  Gaul.  The 
East  Goths,  under  their  King  Theodoric^  established  a  great 
kingdonTin  Italy.  Some  years  after  they  were  driven  from 
Italy,  in  the  sixth  century,  their  place  was  taken  by  the 
Lombards,  whose  power  proved  firmer  and  more  enduring. 
In  the  fifth  century  our  own  forefathers  began  to  leave  their 
seats  on  the  shores  of  the  North  Sea,  and  to  settle  in 
Britain.  Many  of  the  lands  which  these  tribes  had  held 
fell  into  the  hands  of  the*  Sclaves,  so  that  the  Elbe  and  the 
Saal  became  the  eastern  boundary  of  Gennany. 

2.  Groups  of  Tribes. — We  hear  very  little,  after  the 
third  century,  of  the  many  tribes  formerly  scattered  over 
Germany.  They  still  existed,  but  they  wel-e  joined  together 
in  groups  or  confederations.  How  these  were  formed, 
we  do  not  know.  The  tie  which  united  the  members  of 
a  confederation  was  very  loose.  Still,  the  members  of 
each  confederation  had  a  certain  sense  of  kinship,  and 
this  prepared  the  way  for  a  closer  political  connexion. 
The  Alemanni,  who  took  in  a  number  of  Suevic  tribes, 
were  one  of  the  most  powerful  of  the  confederations.  In 
the  third  century  they  held  the  country  between  the 
Danube  and  the  Main,  and  from  thence  made  many 
incursions  into  Roman  territory.  They  gradually  advanced 
southwards  and  westwards  as  far  as  the  Upper  Rhine,  the 
Aar,  and  the  Vosges  mountains.  To  the  north  of  the 
Alemanni,  from  the  Main  to  the  mouths  of  the  Rhine,  were 
the  Franks.  The  land  to  the  east  of  the  Franks  was 
held  by  the  Saxons  and  Frisians.  The  latter  held  the 
whole  line  of  coast  trom  the  Rhine  to  the  Elbe  ;  the  former, 

B 


i8 


THE  FRANKS, 


[chap. 


the  basins  of  the  Lower  Elbe,  the  Weser,  and  the  Ems.  The 
centre  of  what  is  now  Germany  was  in  the  hands  of  the 
Thurin^ians.  They  held  the  wooded  mountains  which  are 
still  called  by  their  name,  and  some  part  of  the  country  to 
the  north  and  south.  These  various  confederations  may  pro- 
bably be  identified  with  the  groups  into  which  the  Germans, 
in  the  time  of  Tacitus,  divided  themselves.  If  so,  the  Saxons 
and  Frisians  would  represent  the  ancient  Ingaevones ;  the 
Franks  the  Istaevones^  and  the  Alemanni  and  Thuringians 
the  Herminones.  Another  confederation  was  gradually 
formed  by  the  Goths  who  remained  in  Germany,  the 
Marcomanni^  and  others.  These  were  the  Bojoarii  or 
Bavarians^  whose  country  took  in  greater  part  of  the 
basin  of  the  Inu,  and  who  became  subject  in  turn  to 
Odoacer  and  to  Theodoric  the  Great. 

3.  The  Franks.  The  Ripuarians.— Of  these  groups  of 
tribes,  the  Franks  were  by  far  the  most  important.  The 
history  of  the  Franks  is  for  several  centuries  the  history 
of  Germany.  They  conquered  the  Gauls  and  their  own 
kinsmen,  and  laid  the  foundation  of  the  future  kingdoms 
of  Germany  and  France,  From  the  third  century  the 
Franks  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Middle  Rhine  often  broke 
into  Gaul,  and  attacked  the  Romans.  They  several  times 
conquered  Koln^  Mainz^  and  Trier^  and  harried  the  neigh- 
bouring lands.  In  the  fourth  century  they  were  driven  back 
by  Constantine  and  Julian^  and  in  the  fifth  by  the  great 
general  Aetitis;  but  in  the  latter  half  of  the  fifth  century 
they  were  masters  of  the  whole  country  between  the  Middle 
Rhine  and  the  Maes.  They  held  also  part  of  the  banks  of 
the  Moselle,  and  had  lands  as  far  south  as  the  northern 
boundaries  of  the  Alemanni  and  Burgundians.  At  this 
time  their  chief  town  was  Koln;  and  they  were  called 
(probably  from  Ripa^  a  bank)  Riparii  or  Ripuarii. 

4.  The  Salian    Franks.— The    Franks    who    held    th« 


III.] 


KING  CHLODIO.     THE  SALIC  CODE. 


19 


banks  of  the  Lower  Rhine  were  called  by  the  Romans 
Saltans.  The  Ripuarians  were  more  numerous  than  the 
Salians;  but  it  was  the  Salians  who  founded  the  great 
Frankisb  kingdom.  They  sprang  for  the  most  part  from 
those  Sicambri  whom  Tiberius  settled  near  the  mouths  of 
the  Rhine,  and  were  probably  called  Salians  from  a  tribe 
which  wandered  westwards  from  the  Yssel  or  Isala^  and 
united  to  form  one  people  with  the  Sicambri.  The  Salians 
were  nominally  subject  to  the  Romans,  and  served  in  the 
Roman  army  ;  but  they  kept  their  native  institutions,  and 
always  tried,  when  they  had  a  chance,  to  become  indepen- 
dent At  the  time  of  Julian  they  held  the  country  from  the 
Lower  Rhine  to  the  west  of  the  Maes.  Julian  advanced 
against  them,  and  defeated  them  ;  but  he  allowed  them  to 
keep  the  land  they  had  seized.  About  the  beginning  of  the 
fifth  century  they  still  served  in  the  Roman  army,  but  no 
longer  recognised  Roman  supremacy.  They  probably  then 
held  the  whole  country  between  the  Lower  Rhine  and  the 
Schelde. 

5.  King  Chlodio.  The  Salic  code.— The  Salians  were 
governed  by  Kings.  Probably  their  first  King— at  all 
events,  the  first  of  whom  we  know  anything — was  Chlodio. 
He  reigned  about  the  middle  of  the  fifth  centuiy.  He 
was  defeated  by  the  Romans  under  Aetius ;  but  he 
succeeded  in  pushing  his  boundaries  as  far  west  as  the 
Somme.  He  became  a  faithful  ally  of  the  Romans,  who 
often  afterwards— especially  in  the  great  battle  fought 
in  451  against  Attila — received  important  aid  from  the 
Salians.  The  famous  Salic  Code  was  probably  drawn  up 
about  the  time  of  Chlodio.  The  state  of  society  which  it 
represents  is  in  many  respects  the  same  as  that  described 
by  Tacitus.  The  people,  like  all  their  kinsmen  who  had 
not  left  Germany,  are  still  heathens.  The  tribe  is  divided 
into   Hundreds,  and  these  again  into  villages;    and  tho 


X 


fIL] 


CAUSES  OF  CHLOD WIG'S  SUCCESS, 


21 


20 


THE  FRANKS, 


[chap. 


occupation  of  the  people,  when  they  are  not  engaged 
in  war,  continues  mainly  agricultural.  But  the  position 
of  the  King  has  changed.  He  no  longer  receives  his 
authorit)  from  the  people  ;  he  inherits  it,  and  exercises 
it  as  a  right.  He  appoints  the  chiefs,  who  are  called 
Grafs  or  Counts^  and  decides  cases  of  justice  which  the 
Meeting  of  the  Hundred— the  largest  that  seems  now  to 
be  held — cannot  settle.  There  is  no  trace  of  the  old 
noble  class ;  what  raises  men  above  their  fellows  is 
connexion  with  the  King.  Those  whom  he  appoints  to 
an  office,  and  the  members  of  his  "  Gefolge"  or  "  Comi- 
tatus,"  hold  a  very  high  position.  The  "Wergeld"  of  a 
Graf  and  of  a  follower  of  the  King  is  three  times  as 
large  as  that  of  a  common  freeman.  The  King  has 
thus  already  become  the  central  element  in  the  constitu- 
tion. He  exercises  supreme  authority,  and  is  the  fountain 
of  honour.  This  great  increase  of  the  royal  power  was 
perhaps  partly  due  to  the  influence  of  Roman  ideas,  for 
the  Salians  in  the  Roman  army  would  naturally  learn 
habits  of  strict  obedience. 

6.  Merowig.  Childeric. — The  successor  of  Chlodio  is 
said  to  have  been  Merowig.  We  know  nothing  certainly 
of  this  King.  If  he  really  existed,  he  must  have  made  a  deep 
impression  on  the  men  of  his  time,  for  the  future  Kings  of 
the  Franks  were  called  after  him  Merowingiatis.  Childeric^ 
whose  capital  was  Tournay^  was  a  great  Salian  King  in  the 
latter  half  of  the  fifth  century.  He  aided  the  Romans 
against  the  West  Goths,  and  is  said  also  to  have  opposed 
the  Alemanni,  who  were  threatening  Italy.  The  close  con- 
nexion of  the  Salians  with  the  Romans  at  this  time  prepared 
the  way  for  the  great  career  on  which  they  were  about  to 
enter. 

7.  Chlodwig.  Conquest  of  Gaul. — Childeric  was  suc- 
ceeded,   in    481,  by  his  son,   Chlodovech    or    Chlodwig, 


Chlodwig  was  a  mere  boy  when  he  became  King,  but  he 
was  destined  to  become  one  of  the  greatest  conquerors  in 
the  histoiy  of  the  world.  He  began  his  career  by  attacking 
Syagrius,  the  governor  of  the  part  of  Gaul  which  was 
still  directly  subject  to  Rome.  Having  defeated  Syagrius 
near  Soissons^  Chlodwig  took  possession  of  the  country 
as  far  as  the  Seine.  He  afterwards  became  master  of 
the  land  between  the  Seine  and  the  Loire^  where  the 
Armorican  Republic  is  said  to  have  been  established.  He 
also  defeated  the  Burgundians,  and  made  their  King  pay 
him  tribute.  Crossing  the  Loire,  he  defeated  the  West 
Goths  in  a  battle  near  Poitiers.  Chlodwig  was  unable 
to  conquer  the  southern  part  of  Gaul  ;  but  after  the  defeat 
of  the  \yest  Goths  his  kingdom  reached  as  far  south  as 
the  Garonne.  Thus,  within  a  short  time,  he  had  con- 
quered nearly  the  whole  of  Gaul. 

8.  Causes  of  Chlod wig's  success. — At  first  sight  it 
appears  strange  that  a  petty  King  with  comparatively 
few  followers  should  do  such  great  things  ;  and  that, 
having  conquered  such  vast  territories,  he  should  after- 
wards be  able  to  hold  the  people  in  subjection.  The 
chief  cause  of  Chlodwig's  success  was  that  he  had 
become  a  Christian.  On  Christmas  day  of  496  he  was 
baptized  with  great  pomp,  with  3,000  of  his  warriors,  at 
Rheifns.  The  story  is  that  his  baptism  was  the  result 
of  a  vow  made  in  the  heat  of  a  battle  with  the  Alemanni 
near  Ziilpich,  that  if  the  God  of  the  Christians  gave 
him  the  victory  he  would  give  up  his  gods  and  accept 
Christianity.  The  Franks  in  the  old  settlements  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  the  Schelde  were  not  converted  for 
some  time  ;  but  from  the  time  of  his  baptism  Chlodwig's 
kingdom  was  at  least  nominally  Christian.  This  fact  did 
more  for  him  than  all  the  bravery  of  his  troops.  The 
Germans  already  settled  in  Gaul  were  Christians  ;  but  they 


22 


THE  FRANKS, 


[chap. 


were  not  members  of  the  Catholic  Church.  They  were 
Arians.  The  Catholic  clergy,  therefore,  were  their  enemies, 
and  longed  foi  some  ruler  who  should  uphold  the  true 
faith.  From  the  beginning  they  looked  to  Chlodwig 
with  hope.  When  he  entered  the  Church  they  warmly 
supported  him  ;  and  their  friendship  meant  the  good-will 
of  the  great  body  of  the  people.  Another  circumstance 
aided  Chlodwig.  The  Emperor  Anastasius,  anxious  that 
the  barbarian  conqueror  should  have  some  formal  con- 
nexion with  the  Roman  Empire,  sent  him,  after  his  victory 
over  the  West  Goths,  the  titles  of  Cotisul  and  Patridan, 
This  seemed  to  make  Chlodwig  the  lawful  ruler  of  Gaul, 
and  probably  won  over  some  whom  even  the  Church  might 
have  failed  to  influence.  -^ 

9.  Conquest  of  the  Alemanni.  Union  of  all  Frankish 
Tribes. — Chlodwig  was  far  more  than  the  conqueror  of 
Gaul.  The  Saxons,  Thuringians,  and  Bavarians,  did  not 
fall  under  his  power;  but  he  subdued  the  Alemanni,  and 
seems  to  have  colonized  the  part  of  their  territory  between 
the  Neckar  and  the  Main  with  a  Frankish  population. 
He  also  united  all  the  Frankish  tribes  under  his  rule. 
When  he  began  his  reign  there  was  no  political  connexion 
between  the  Salians  and  the  Ripuarians  ;  and  the  Salians 
themselves  had  other  Kings  besides  Chlodwig.  Chlodwig 
slew  these  Kings,  and  the  King  of  the  Ripuarians,  together 
with  their  heirs.  He  appears  to  have  taken  possession  of 
Salian  territory  as  a  right ;  the  Ripuarians  elected  him  to  be 
their  King.  The  Franks  of  every  tribe  thus  acknowledged 
one  lord,  and  began  to  feel  themselves  bound  together  by 
many  common  interests.  As  the  centre  of  a  great  kingdom, 
destined  to  be  the  most  enduring  of  all  the  States  founded 
by  the  Germans  in  foreign  countries,  they  could  not  but 
learn  to  be  proud  of  the  common  Frankish  name. 

10.  Lands  seized    by    Chlodwig. — Chlodwig   was    not 


III.] 


CHLODWIG'S  SUCCESSORS. 


23 


followed  into  the  heart  of  Gaul  by  the  Salians  as  a  people 
He  was  accompanied  only  by  his  "  Gefolge "  and  an  army 
of  freemen.  He  did  not,  therefore,  like  other  German  con- 
querors demand  any  particular  proportion  of  the  conquered 
territory.  But  he  took  possession  of  all  public  lands 
and  of  lands  which  had  no  certain  owner.  These  were 
divided  between  himself  and  those  who  accompanied  him. 
Land  allotted  to,  or  seized  by,  a  freeman,  was  called 
allodial.  Allodial  land  was  the  absolute  property  of  the 
possessor,  held  by  him  subject  to  no  condition  except  that 
of  aiding,  when  necessary,  in  the  defence  of  the  State. 
The  lands  kept  for  the  King  must  have  been  very  extensive. 
They  were  cdWtd.  fiscal  lands,  and  became  the  chief  source 
of  the  royal  revenue. 

II.  Chlodwig's   successors. — Chlodwig  died  in   511    in 
Paris.      His  kingdom  was  divided  among  his  four  sons. 
This  division  did  not  break  up  the  unity  of  the  kingdom. 
The  subjects  of  the  four  brothers  continued  to  look  on 
themselves  as  members  of  one  State.    The  East  or  Rhenish 
Franks,  and  those  Germans  to  the  east  of  the  Rhine  whom 
Chlodwig  had  conquered,  were  placed  under  Chlodwig's 
eldest  son,  Tlieodoric.     His  was  by  far  the  most  powerful  of 
the  four  divisions.     He  made  the  bulk  of  Thuringia  tribu- 
tary ;  autf  his  son  and  successor,  Theudebei't^  subdued  the 
Bavaria fis,  and  completed  the  subjection  d(  the  Alemanni. 
Thus  the  greater  part  of  Germany  was  brought  under  the 
rule  of  the  Franks.      The  Saxons  and  Frisians  alone  re- 
mained independent.    Theodoric's  brothers,  who,  after  the 
death  of  Theodoric  the  Great  in  526,  found  little  hindrance 
to  their  schemes  of  conquest,  thoroughly  mastered  Bur- 
gundy, and  gained    possession   of   the    southern  part  of 
Gaul.       Chlotachar^  or   Clothair  /.,   Chlodwig's   youngest 
son,  joined  together  again  the  whole  Frankish  kingdom. 
Under  him  the  kingdom  was  almost  as  extensive  as  at  any 


24 


THE  FRANKS. 


[chap. 


III.] 


BENEFICES. 


25 


time  for  more  than  two  centuries  afterwards.  Like  his 
father,  he  was  succeeded  by  his  four  sons  ;  but  when  one 
of  these  died,  the  kingdom  was  again  divided.  After  this 
the  different  parts  of  the  kingdom  were  several  times 
brought  together  under  one  King ;  but  more  usually  there 
were  three  kingdoms — Austrasia^  the  kingdom  of  the  East 
Franks,  Neiistria^  the  kingdom  of  the  West  Franks,  and 
Burgundy.  Neustria  and  Burgundy  often  went  together, 
but  Austrasia  always  tried  to  have  a  King  of  its  own,  and 
became  more  and  more  separated  from  the  other  kingdoms. 

12.  The  Merowingian  Kings. — The  Merowingian  Kings 
were  usually  very  bad  rulers,  but  at  first  they  had  great 
power.  There  was  for  a  time  a  yearly  gathering  of  Frank- 
ish  freemen,  called,  from  the  fact  that  it  met  in  March, 
the  Marchficld.  This  was  soon  given  up  in  Neustria, 
because  the  Franks  lived  at  great  distances  from  one 
another,  and  could  not  easily  go  to  Meetings  far  away 
from  their  homes.  In  Austrasia  the  Marchlicld  was  pro- 
bably only  a  military  assembly.  Thus  the  power  which 
had  once  belonged  to  all  freemen  gradually  passed  into 
the  hands  of  the  King.  The  position  of  the  Kings  was 
further  raised  by  their  Roman  subjects  readily  conceding 
to  them  some  of  the  powers  which  had  belonged  to  the 
Emperors. 

13.  Dukes  aifd  Counts. — The  Frankish  kingdoms  were 
divided  into  Gaits  or  Districts^  each  of  which  was  governed 
by  a  Count.  A  number  of  Gaus  made  a  Duchy^  over 
which  was  a  Herzog  or  Duke.  Each  of  the  great  groups  or 
confederations  of  tribes  in  Germany  formed  a  separate 
Duchy.  The  Dukes  and  Counts  in  Gaul  were  appointed 
solely  by  the  King,  and  were  looked  on  as  his  officers. 
The  Bavarians  elected  their  own  Dukes  ;  and  they  always 
chose  them  from  one  noble  family,  the  Agiloljings.  The 
Alemanni   and   Thuringians  had  also  some  sl^re  in  the 


v> 


I 


appointment  of  their  Dukes.  The  freemen  of  each  German 
Duchy  met  their  Duke  once  in  the  year,  and  consulted 
with  him  on  affairs  of  importance.  Thus  the  Germans  tc 
the  east  of  the  Rhine  kept  more  of  the  old  freedom  than 
their  Frankish  conquerors. 

14.  Benefices. — The  Merowingian  Kings  soon  adopted 
the  Roman  custom  of  granting  lands  on  condition  of 
military  service.  Such  grants  were  called  at  first  benefices, 
but  afterwards yftyi-.  They  were  made  frorr  the  royal  lands, 
and  were  usually  given  to  the  King's  me7t  or  vassals — that 
is,  to  the  Dukes,  Counts,  and  members  of  the  "  Gcfolge." 
Thus  the  service  required  by  a  Merowingian  King  from  the 
holder  of  a  benefice  was  not,  like  that  required  for  lands 
granted  by  the  Roman  Government,  service  to  the  State  ; 
it  was  the  service  of  a  vassal  to  his  lord.  The  relation 
be»^ween  the  two  was  wholly  personal  in  its  character. 
Those  who  did  not  already  hold  this  personal  relation  to 
the  King,  on  receiving  a  benefice,  became  his  men,  and 
swore  to  be  faithful  to  him  and  to  give  him  service  in  war. 
From  this  combination  of  Roman  and  Teutonic  ideas 
sprang  the  system  of  feudal  tenures.  [See  the  General 
Sketch  of  European  History  in  this  Series.]  When 
benefices  became  hereditary,  the  holders  usually  granted 
pieces  of  land  to  others,  who  entered  into  the  same  relation 
to  them  that  they  held  to  the  King.  And  in  times  of  con- 
fusion, freemen  very  often  gave  up  their  lands  to  some 
powerful  lord,  and  received  them  back  tus  fiefs,  thus  binding 
themselves  to  serve  him  in  war  while  he  undertook  to 
protect  them  against  their  enemies.  In  the  end,  the  Dukes 
and  Counts  came  to  hold  their  Duchies  and  Counties 
in  fief  and  thus  looked  on  all  fief-holders  within  theii 
districts  as  their  vassals.  But  this  was  not  for  some 
time  vet, 

15.  The    Royal    household. — The    Merowingian  Kings, 


\ 


\ 


THE  FRANKS. 


[CH.  III.] 


having  become  rich  and  great,  hved  in  a  style  of  which  the 

early  German  Kings  and  chiefs  had  never  dreamed.    The 

duties    of   their  household  were  divided  among  a  large 

number  of  officers,  among  whom  were  the  Seneschal,  the 

Marshal,  and  the  Chancellor.     Over  all  officers  of  the  court 

was  the  Major  Domus,  or  Mayor  of  the  Palace.    An  officer 

of  less   importance,  at  this  time,  was  the  Palsgrave,  or 

Count  of  the   Palace,  whose  duties  had  to  do  with  the 

royal  tribunal.     These,  and  all  other  great  officers,  were 

taken  chiefly  from  the  members  of  the  "  Gefolge."     They 

formed  a  Council  which  aided  the  King  in  administering 

justice  and  in  carrying  on  the  affairs  of  the  SUtc 


\ 


\ 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  MAYORS  OF  THE  PALACE,  AND  DUKES  OF  THE 

FRANKS. 

A  new  aristocracy  arises;  the  pouter  of  the  Kings  lessened  {\)—thf 
Mayors  of  the  Palace  the  real  rulers  of  the  Prankish  king- 
doms (2) — Pippin  of  Her  stall  rules  the  East  Franks;  defeats 
the  West  Franks  at  Testri  {,1)— Charles  Martel ;  victory  over 
the  Arabs  (4) — Pippin  the  Short  becomes  King  (5) — conversion 
of  German  tribes  through  the  preaching  of  English  missionaries  i 
Winfrith  ;  the  See  of  Mainz  the  head  Church  of  Germany  (6). 

I.  The  rise  of  a  new  aristocracy. — The  holders  of 
benefices  tried  from  the  beginning  to  make  their  lands 
hereditary  ;  and  many  of  them  soon  succeeded  in  doing  so. 
Thus  a  great  new  aristocracy  arose  which  took  the  place 
among  the  Franks  of  the  old  noble  class.  This  aristocracy 
soon  lessened  the  kingly  power.  Its  leading  members 
often  met,  and  not  only  shared  the  government  with  the 
King,  but  sometimes  forced  him  to  confirm  them  in  rights 
which  they  had  seized.  Such  gatherings  took  the  place,  to 
some  extent,  of  the  old  national  Meetings.  The  various 
Kings  had  given  away  so  many  lands  as  benefices  that 
they  were  soon  too  poor  to  defend  themselves.  They  were 
also  weakened  by  carrying  on  many  cruel  wars  with  each 
other.  Thus  it  came  about  that  by  the  middle  of  the 
seventh  century  the  Mcrowingian  Kings,  who  had  for  a 
time  been  so  great,  had  lost  nearly  all  their  power.    The 


28 


THE  MAYORS  OF  THE  PALACE. 


[chap. 


Dukes,  Counts,  and  other  rich  men,  acted  as  if  they  were 
independent  princes.  The  great  German  Duchies,  although 
still  nominally  subject  to  the  Franks,  were  practically  free. 

2.  Mayors  of  the  Palace. — During  this  time  of  confusion 
the  Mayors  of  the  Palace  rose  to  great  power.  They  had 
long  ceased  to  be  mere  household  officers.  They  had  at 
first  been  appointed  by  the  King  ;  but,  as  they  became 
more  powerful,  the  aristocracy  took  the  right  of  appointing 
them  into  its  own  hands.  For  a  long  time  they  were  the 
real  rulers  of  the  Frankish  kingdoms.  They  sometimes 
tried  to  keep  the  aristocracy  in  check ;  but  they  were 
usually  its  representatives  and  leaders.  One  of  the  most 
famous  Mayors  of  the  Palace  was  Pippin  of  Landen^  who* 
with  Arnulf^  Bishop  of  Metz^  ruled  Au^trasia  in  the  early 
part  of  the  seventh  century.  A  little  later,  Ebroin  was  a 
great  Mayor  in  Neustria  and  Burgundy.  He  made  war  on 
the  East  Franks,  and  was  for  some  time  successful ;  but 
in  the  end  he  was  killed. 

3.  Pippin  of  Herstall. — While  Ebroin  ruled  the  West 
Franks,  Pippin  of  Herstall^  grandson  of  Arnulf  by  the 
father's,  and  of  Pippin  of  Landen  by  the  mother's  side,  and 
his  cousin  Martin^  became  leaders  of  the  East  Franks. 
They  were  called  Dukes,  and  their  position  was  very  much 
the  same  as  that  of  Dukes  among  the  German  kinsmen  of 
the  Franks.  After  Martin's  death,  the  whole  power  fell 
into  Pippin's  hands.  Although  the  East  and  West  Franks 
had  often  been  at  war,  neither  had  hitherto  thoroughly 
overcome  the  other.  In  687,  Pippin  utterly  defeitcd  the 
West  Franks  in  the  Battle  of  Testri.  This  battie  marks 
an  epoch  in  Frankish  history,  for  after  it  the  first  place  in 
the  kingdom  openly  belonged  to  the  East  Franks.  Pippin 
did  not  dethrone  the  reigning  Merowingian  King ;  but  he 
kept  all  real  power  in  his  own  hands.  In  Neustria,  he 
took  the  title  of  Mayor  of  the  Palace  ;  but  in  Austrasia,  he 


IV.] 


CHARLES  MAR  TEL, 


29 


niled,  as  before,  as  Duke  of  the  Franks.  He  was  by  far 
the  best  ruler  the  Frankish  kingdom  had  yet  had.  He 
fought  hard  to  make  the  German  Dukes  return  to  the.r 
allegiance;  and  he  was  to  some  extent  successfiL  He 
also  made  most  of  the  Dukes  and  Counts  in  Gaul  acknow- 
ledge his  authority,  and  restored  the  Marchfield  and  othei 
institutions  that  had  been  allowed  to  die  away.  Thus 
Pippin  brought  back  something  like  order  to  the  Frankish 
kingdom,  and  tried  to  make  it  once  more  a  great  and 
united  State.     He  died  in  714. 

4.  Charles  Martel. — After  Pippin's  death  the  Neustrians 
made  war  on  the  East  Franks ;  but  his  son  Charles 
defeated  them,  first  at  Cainbrai^  and  afterwards  at  Soissons. 
Charles  thus  rose  like  his  father  to  supreme  power.  He 
also  nominally  ruled  as  a  subject  of  the  Merowingians. 
In  order  to  have  the  means  of  rewarding  his  men,  he 
** resumed"  many  of  the  lands  held  by  the  Church  in  Gaul. 
This  roused  the  opposition  of  the  clergy,  but  it  enabled 
Charles  to  surround  himself  by  a  large  number  of  faithful 
followers.  The  task  of  joining  together  again  the  Roman 
and  German  provinces,  which  Pippin  had  begun,  Charles 
carried  on  ;  and  he  extended  the  kingdom  by  overcoming 
the  Frisians.  In  731  he  gained  a  famous  victory  over  the 
AradSy  who,  having  conquered  Spain,  tried  also  to  conquer 
Gaul.  From  this  victory,  Charles  was  called  Martel^  or 
the  Hammer.  It  won  him  great  renown  as  the  protector  of 
Christendom.  During  the  last  few  years  of  his  life  he 
was  strong  enough  to  rule  without  the  appointment  of 
a  nominal  King ;  but  he  never  took  the  royal  title.  He 
died  in  741,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  two  sons,  Pippi7i 
the  Short  and  Carlmaji. 

5.  Pippin  the  Short. — One  of  the  first  acts  of  the  two 
brothers  was  to  appoint  a  successor  to  the  last  Merowingian 
King.     They  also  tried  to  make  the    Clturch  friendly  to 


30 


THE  MAYORS  OF  THE  PALACE. 


[chap. 


them.  In  747  Carlman  went  into  a  monastery,  and  thus 
left  the  whole  power  to  Pippin.  The  latter  then  began  to 
think  of  making  himself  King.  Even  yet  the  people  looked 
on  the  Merowingians  as  their  lawful  rulers  ;  but  in  751 
Pippin  got  Pope  Zacharias  to  decide  that  one  who  had  the 
power  of  a  King  had  a  better  right  to  the  crown  than  one 
who  was  merely  a  King  in  name.  Pippin  held  an  Assembly 
at  Soissons  in  753,  where  Childeric  III.  was  dethroned,  and 
he  himself  was  elected  and  crowned  King.  Thus  the 
Merowingians  were  altogether  thmst  aside,  and  a  new  and 
stronger  dynasty  reigned  in  their  stead. 

6.  Conversion  of  German  Tribes. — During  this  period 
many  German  tribes  became  Christian.  So  early  as  the 
sixth  and  the  beginning  of  the  seventh  century,  Irish  and 
Frankish  missionaries  had  tried  to  convert  the  Germans. 
In  the  latter  half  of  the  seventh  century  the  task  was  taken 
up  by  countrymen  of  our  own  ;  and  they  were  the  first  to 
labour  with  the  sanction  of  the  Pope.  Wi/frith,  viho  was 
accidentally  driven,  in  677,  on  the  shores  of  Friesland 
preached  there  with  great  success.  His  work  was  carried 
on  by  IViilibrord,  who  lived  among  the  Frisians  about 
fifty  years.  Greater  than  either  of  these  was  Winfrith^ 
afterwards  called  Saint  Boniface  and  the  Apostle  of  the 
Gerynans.  He  helped  Willibrord  for  some  time,  but 
spent  the  greater  part  of  his  life  in  Southern  and  Central 
Germany.  In  723  he  was  made  '^^  Episcopus  Regionarius" 
of  Germany — that  is.  Bishop  without  any  special  diocese. 
After  this  he  brought  tribe  after  tribe  within  the  Church, 
and  founded  various  bishopricks  and  monasteries.  In 
732  he  received  the  archiepiscopal  palliu?n,  and  in  742 
presided  over  the  first  German  Synod.  In  745  he  was 
appointed,  as  Metropolitan  of  Germany,  to  the  See  of 
Mainz,  which  from  this  time  occupied  in  the  German 
Church  the  position  held  by  the   See    of    Canterbury  in 


IV.] 


CONVERSION  OF  GERMAN  TRIBES, 


31 


the  Church  of  England.  Ten  years  afterwards  he  was 
killed  in  Friesland  while  on  his  way  to  confirm  some 
converts.  At  the  time  of  Winfrith's  death,  and  chiefly 
owing  to  his  efforts,  all  Germany,  with  the  exception  of 
Saxony,  was  nominally  Christian.  The  old  pagan  ideas* 
still  influenced  to  some  extent  the  minds  of  the  people  ;  but 
the  good  seed  had  been  sown,  and  soon  began  to  spring  up 
and  to  bear  fruit 


[CH.V.]  CONQUEST  OF  THE  SAXONS  BY  CHARLES,    33 


CHAPTER  V. 
CHARLES  THE  GREAT. 

King  Pippin;  defeats  the  Lombards;  is  made  Patrician;  his  wars  (l) 
— Charles  the  Great;  conquers  the  Saxons  (2) — conquers  the 
Lombards  {2,)— conquers  part  of  Spain  {/^)— deprives  the  Duke 
of  Bavaria  of  his  Duchy;  conquers  the  Avars  {$)— lessens  the 
power  of  the  pro7jiiuial  governors ;  Margraves;  Missi  Do- 
mi  nici ;  National  Assemblies  ;  protection  oftlte  Church;  encour- 
agement of  learning;  Alcuin  (6)—iscrorcvned  Roman  Emperor  {7) 

conquest  of  Bohemia  ;  boundaries  of  the  Empire  ;  capitals  of 

the  Empire  [%)— Charles's  son  Le^vis  croavned;  death  of  Charles  {9) 

Lewis  the  Pious ;  divides  the  Empire  among  his  sons ;  their 

rebellions  {10)— battle  of  Fontenay  ;  Treaty  of  Verdun  (ll). 

I.  King  Pippin. — At  this  time  the  Lombards  had  posses- 
sion of  Ravenna,  and  were  threatening  Rome.  Pope 
Zacharias,  in  aiding  Pippin  to  become  King,  had  hoped 
that  he  would  come  to  the  help  of  the  Church.  For  some 
time  he  did  not  do  so;  but  in  the  end  he  made  two 
expeditions  into  Italy,  and  defeated  the  Lombards.  He 
thus  became  lord  of  Rome.  Probably  in  return  for  his 
services,  he  received  from  the  Pope  the  title  of  Patrician, 
The  Pope  had  no  legal  right  to  give  this  title,  and  the 
duties  connected  with  it  were  very  vague  ;  but  it  made 
Pippin  still  more  friendly  to  the  Church,  and  added  con- 
siderably to  his  dignity.  The  rest  of  Pippin's  life  was 
chiefly  spent  in  wars,  which  he  carried  on  with  great  vigour. 
After  a  sUuggle  which  lasted  for  seven  years,  he  finally 


wrested  the  south  of  Gaul  from  the  Arabs  ;  and  he  forced 
the  Aquitanians  to  submit,  really  as  well  as  nominally,  to 
Prankish  authority.    He  died  in  768. 

2.  Charles  the  Great.  Conquest  of  the  Saxons. — The 
kingdom  was  divided  between  Pippin's  two  sons,  Charles 
and  Carlman.  The  latter  died  in  771,  and  Charles  became 
sole  King.  Charles  was  a  man  of  great  strength  both  of 
mind  and  body,  and  soon  became  one  of  the  greatest  Kings 
that  have  ever  lived.  When  he  began  his  reign,  the  only 
German  people  who  had  never  been  subject  to  the  Franks 
were  the  Saxons.  They  were  still  heathens,  and  kept 
almost  all  the  old  German  institutions.  Their  land  reached 
from  the  mouths  of  the  Elbe  southwards  to  Thuringia  and 
westwards  nearly  to  the  Rhine.  Charles  resolved  to 
conquer  them,  and  in  772  set  out  against  them  with  a  large 
army.  He  took  their  chief  fortress,  Eresburg,  and  destroyed 
Irminsiil,  a  mysterious  column  which  they  held  in  great 
awe.  As  the  people  seemed  to  submit,  he  thought  he  had 
already  conquered  them ;  but  in  reality  he  had  begun  a 
war  which  was  to  last  thirty  years.  The  Saxons  loved 
freedom,  and  again  and  again,  when  they  had  seemed 
utterly  worn  out,  arose  and  threw  off  the  Prankish  yoke. 
A  chief  called  Widiikitid  especially  distinguished  himself 
by  his  resistance  to  Charles.  Charles  was  so  irritated  by 
the  trouble  the  people  gave  him  that  in  782  he  caused  no 
fewer  than  4,500  prisoners  to  be  put  to  death  ;  but  even 
this  did  not  crush  them.  In  the  end,  however,  he  over- 
came them,  and  forced  them  to  accept  Christianity. 

3.  Conquest  of  the  Lombards. — When  Charles  was 
engaged  in  his  first  expedition  into  Saxony,  the  Lombards 
again  threatened  Rome.  He  at  once  hastened  to  the  help 
of  the  Pope  and  the  Roman  people,  and  in  774  thoroughly 
conquered  the  Lombards.  He  allowed  Lombrady  to 
remain  a  separate  kingdom,   but    deposed    the  Lombard 

c 


% 


\    rl  is 


V 


V 


34 


CHARLES  THE  GREAT, 


[chap. 


King,  and  himself  took  the  crown.  From  this  time 
Charles's  full  title  was  King  of  the  Franks  and  LojnbanL 
and  Patrician  of  the  Romans. 

4.  Expedition  into  Spain.  —  While  Charles  was  in 
Saxony,  in  i-]-],  holding  an  Assembly  at  Paderborn,  am- 
bassadors from  the  governors  of  Zaragoza  and  Huesca  came 
and  asked  him  for  help  against  Abdcrrhatnan,  the  Caliph 
of  Cordova,  He  promised  to  aid  them,  and  in  778  made 
an  expedition  into  Spain,  the  result  of  which  was  that  he 
extended  the  boundary  of  his  kingdom  across  the  Pyrenees 
as  far  as  the  Ebro.  When  coming  back  he  sustained  a 
heavy  loss.  He  himself,  with  the  greater  part  of  his  army, 
reached  the  northern  side  of  the  Pyrenees  in  safety  ;  but  a 
large  body  bringing  up  the  rear  was  suddenly  attacked  by 
the  Basques  in  the  pass  of  Roncesvalles,  and  almost  wholly 

cut  down. 

5.  The  Duke  of  Bavaria.  Conquest  of  the  Avars.— At 
this  time  there  was  a  very  powerful  Duke  in  Bavaria,  called 
Thassilo,  of  the  native  house  of  the  Agilolfings.  He  had 
been  defeated  by  Pippin  the  Short,  but  had  soon  thrown 
off  his  allegiance.  In  785,  Charles  marched  against  him. 
He  at  once  submitted,  but  as  he  rebelled  in  the  following 
year  he  was  condemned  to  death  by  an  Assembly  which 
met  at  Ingelheim.  Charles  spared  his  life,  but  deposed 
him,  and  in  future  governed  Bavaria  by  means  of  Counts. 
He  also  made  the  bishoprick  of  Salzburg  into  an  arch- 
bishoprick,  which  took  in  the  whole  of  Bavaria.  Some 
years  aftenvards  Charles  conquered  the  Avars,  a  Turanian 
people  who  had  a  great  kingdom  to  the  east  of  Bavaria  in 
ancient  Pannonia  and  the  neighbouring  lands  on  the  left 
bank  of  the  Danube. 

6.  Government  of  Charles.— Charles  was  not  less  great 
as  a  ruler  than  as  a  conqueror.  One  of  his  chief  objects 
during  his   whole   reign  was  to   lessen  the  power  of  the 


v.] 


GOVERNMENT  OF  CHARLES, 


35 


Dukes  and  Counts.  In  Germany  he  did  away  altogether 
with  the  title  of  Duke.  The  border  districts  of  the  kingdom 
were  made  into  Marks,  and  placed  under  Margraves  or 
Marquesses,  whose  chief  duty  was  to  drive  back  or  conquer 
neighbouring  tribes.  Of  these  Marks  Carinthia,  which 
reached  from  the  Adriatic  to  the  Danube,  was  one  of  the 
chief.  Another,  to  the  east  of  Bavaria,  intended  at  first 
for  the  defence  of  Bavaria  against  the  Avars,  was  after- 
wards called  Oesterreich  or  Austria,  and  became  one  of 
the  most  important  lands  in  Germany.  All  parts  of 
Charles's  dominions  were  visited  four  times  in  the  year  by 
a  peculiar  class  of  officers  called  Missi  Dominici.  They 
reported  to  him  the  state  of  the  country,  and  heard 
appeals  from  the  lower  tribunals.  An  appeal  might  be 
made  from  them  to  the  royal  tribunal,  which  was  now 
presided  over  by  the  Palsgrave.  Two  Assemblies  met 
Charles  in  the  course  of  the  year — one  in  May,  and 
another  in  autumn.  They  were  attended  by  the  Dukes, 
Counts,  Prelates,  and  other  leading  men  of  the  State. 
These  gatherings  could  only  discuss  and  advise  ;  Charles 
himself  decided  what  should  become  law.  Meetings  of 
the  people  were  also  held  in  different  parts  of  the  king- 
dom, at  which  new  laws  were  made  known  by  the  Missi. 
Charles  acted  always  as  a  protector  of  the  Church.  He 
founded  many  bishopricks  and  monasteries,  and  gave 
them  rich  lands.  He  also  made  the  payment  of  tithes 
compulsory  throughout  his  dominions.  Everywhere,  but 
especially  in  Germany,  he  gave  the  prelates  a  much 
higher  position  than  they  had  yet  had,  that  they  might 
act  as  a  check  on  the  secular  governors.  Charles  also 
encouraged  learning,  and  got  many  scholars  to  come  and 
stay  at  his  court.  Of  these  the  chief  was  Ealhwine  or 
Alcuin,  a  native  of  Great  Britain.  He  was  Charles's 
most  honoured  friend  and    counsellor  for   about   twenty 


34 


CHARLES  THE  GREAT, 


[chap. 


King,  and  himself  took  the  crown.  From  this  time 
Charles's  full  title  was  King  of  the  Franks  and  LombanL 
and  Patrician  of  the  Romans. 

4.  Expedition  into  Spain.  —  While  Charles  was  in 
Saxony,  in  m,  holding  an  Assembly  at  Faderborn,  am- 
bassadors from  the  governors  of  Zaragoza  and  Huesca  came 
and  asked  him  for  help  against  Abderrhaman,  the  Caliph 
of  Cordova.  He  promised  to  aid  them,  and  in  778  made 
an  expedition  into  Spain,  the  result  of  which  was  that  he 
extended  the  boundary  of  his  kingdom  across  the  Pyrenees 
as  far  as  the  Ebro.  When  coming  back  he  sustained  a 
heavy  loss.  He  himself,  with  the  greater  part  of  his  army, 
reached  the  northern  side  of  the  Pyrenees  in  safety  ;  but  a 
large  body  bringing  up  the  rear  was  suddenly  attacked  by 
the  Basques  in  the  pass  of  Roncesvalles,  and  almost  wholly 

cut  down. 

5.  The  Duke  of  Bavaria.      Conquest  of  the  Avars.— At 
this  time  there  was  a  very  powerful  Duke  in  Bavaria,  called 
Thassilo,  of  the  native  house  of  the  Agilolftngs.     He  had 
been  defeated  by  Pippin  the  Short,  but  had  soon  thrown 
off  his  allegiance.     In  785,  Charles  marched  against  him. 
He  at  once  submitted,  but  as  he  rebelled  in  the  following 
year  he  was  condemned  to  death  by  an  Assembly  which 
met  at  Ingelheim.      Charles   spared  his  life,  but  deposed 
him,  and  in  future  governed  Bavaria  by  means  of  Counts. 
He  also  made  the  bishoprick  of  Salzburg  into  an  arch- 
bishoprick,  which  took  in  the  whole  of  Bavaria.      Some 
years  afterwards  Charles  conquered  the  Avars,  a  Turanian 
people  who  had  a  great  kingdom  to  the  east  of  Bavaria  in 
ancient  Fannonia  and  the  neighbouring  lands  on  the  left 

bank  of  the  Danube. 

6  Government  of  Charles.— Charles  was  not  less  great 
as  a  ruler  than  as  a  conqueror.  One  of  his  chief  objects 
during  his   whole  reign  was  to   lessen  the  power  of  the 


v.] 


GOVERNMENT  OF  CHARLES. 


35 


Dukes  and  Counts.      In  Germany  he  did  away  altogether 
with  the  title  of  Duke.     The  border  districts  of  the  kingdom 
were  made  into  Marks,  and  placed  under  Margraves  or 
Marquesses,  whose  chief  duty  was  to  drive  back  or  conquer 
neighbouring  tribes.      Of  these    Marks   Carinthia,  which 
reached  from  the  Adriatic  to  the  Danube,  was  one  of  the 
chief.     Another,  to  the  east  of  Bavaria,  intended  at  first 
for  the  defence  of  Bavaria  against  the  Avars,  was  after- 
wards called  Oesterreich  or  Austria,  and  became  one  of 
the    most    important   lands    in    Germany.       All  parts   of 
Charles's  dominions  were  visited  four  times  in  the  year  by 
a  peculiar  class  of  officers  called  Missi  Dominici.     They 
reported    to    him   the    state    of   the  country,  and   heard 
appeals  from  the  lower  tribunals.      An  appeal  might  be 
made  from  them  to  the  royal  tribunal,  which  was  now 
presided  over  by  the  Falsgrave.      Two  Assemblies  met 
Charles    in    the  course   of  the    year — one  in   May,  and 
another  in  autumn.     They  were  attended  by  the  Dukes, 
Counts,   Prelates,  and    other  leading  men    of   the    State. 
These  gatherings  could  only  discuss  and  advise  ;    Charles 
himself  decided   what  should  become   law.      Meetings   of 
the  people  were  also  held  in  different  parts  of  the  king- 
dom, at  which  new  laws  were  made  known  by  the  Missi. 
Charles  acted  always  as  a  protector  of  the  Church.      He 
founded   many    bishopricks    and    monasteries,    and    gave 
them  rich  lands.      He  also  made  the  payment  of  tithes 
compulsory  throughout  his  dominions.     Everywhere,   but 
especially    in    Germany,   he    gave    the    prelates    a  much 
higher  position  than  they  had  yet   had,  that    they  might 
act  as  a  check  on  the  secular  governors.       Charles  also 
encouraged  learning,  and  got  many  scholars  to  come  and 
stay  at  his  court.      Of  these  the  chief  was  Ealhwitie  or 
Alcuin,  a  native  of  Great  Britain.      He  was   Charles's 
most  honoured  friend  and   counsellor   for   about   twenty 


36 


CHARLES  THE  GREAT. 


[chap. 


yeais.  By  his  advice  Charles  set  up  schools  in  con- 
nexion with  monasteries.  Some  of  these  schools  became 
very  famous,  and  helped  during  several  centuries  to  keep 
learning  from  altogether  dying  out. 

7.  Charles  crowned  Roman  Emperor. — By  the  end  of 
the  eighth  century  Charles  ruled  so  many  lands  that  he 
was  crowned  Emperor  of  the  Romans  by  Pope  Leo  LIL  in 
St.  Peter's  on  Christmas  Day  of  800.  [See  the  General 
Sketch  of  European  History^  Soon  after  his  coronation 
he  made  his  subjects  renew  their  oath  of  allegiance  to 
him.  They  had  to  swear  allegiance  to  him  as  Emperor, 
for  as  Emperor  he  claimed  far  more  thorough  submission 
than  was  due  to  a  mere  King,  perfect  obedience  tc  the 
Emperor  being  in  those  days  looked  on  as  one  with  perfect 
obedience  to  God. 

8.  Extent  of  Charles's  Empire.  —  Even  after  his 
coronation  as  Emperor,  Charles  had  some  trouble  with 
the  Saxons  ;  but  they  were  worn  out  by  their  long  struggle, 
and  had  at  last  to  submit.  Thus  all  Germany  was  brought 
for  the  first  time  under  the  rule  of  one  man.  Charles  also 
carried  on  wars  with  the  Danes^  and  with  the  Czechs  or 
Bohemians  and  the  other  Slavonic  tribes  on  the  eastern 
borders  of  Germany.  All  these  submitted  to  him. 
When  at  its  height,  Charles's  Empire  reached  from  the 
Baltic  to  the  Ebio,  from  the  North  Sea  and  the  Eider 
to  Central  Italy,  and  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Save,  the 
Theissy  the  Oiler,  and  the  Lower  Vistula.  Of  this  great 
Empire  the  Rhineland,  the  home  of  the  East  Franks,  was 
looked  on  as  the  centre.  Its  capitals  were  Rome  and 
Aachen;  and  Charles  had  also  palaces  at  Ent^ilenhei-n  or 
Ingelheim,  Worms,  and  Herstall.  Aachen  was  his  favourite 
city.  He  built  there  not  only  a  palace,  but  a  fine  basilica, 
from  which  the  town  has  received  its  French  name  oi 
AiX'Li-  Chape  lie. 


v.] 


LEWIS  THE  PIOUS, 


37 


9.  Death  of  Charles. — Charles  wished  to  divide  his 
Empire  between  his  three  sons,  Charles,  Pippin,  and 
Lewis;  but  the  two  first  died  before  him.  Lewis,  therefore, 
was  crowned  as  his  father's  successor  at  an  Assembly  in 
Aachen  in  813.  Early  in  the  following  year  (814),  Charles 
died,  and  was  buried  under  the  dome  of  the  basilica  which 
he  had  built  in  Aachen. 

10.  Lewis  th3  Pious.— Lewis— called  Lewis  the  Pious— 
proved  altogether  unfit  for  his  great  duties.     He  was  well- 
meaning,  but   had    no    strength   of   character.     Although 
crowned  in  his  fathci-'s  lifetime,  he  allowed  the  ceremony 
to  be  repeated  by  Pope  Stephen  HI.  at  Rheims.     In  817 
he  summoned  an   Assembly  at  Aachen,  and   divided  the 
Empire  between  his  three  sons,  Lothar,  Pippin,  and  Lewis. 
Lothar,  who  was  associated  with  his  father  in  the  Empire, 
received  the  Rhineland  and   Italy;    Pippin,  Aquitania; 
and  Lewis,  Bavaria  and   the  adjoining  districts.      After- 
wards   Lewis   had   a   fourth    son,    Charles,  by  a    second 
marriage.     In  829,  he  made  a  separate  kingdom  for  this 
son.     The  three  older  sons,  thinking  themselves  wronged, 
rebelled,   and  got  the   better  of  Lewis,  who  for   a  tim- 
lost  all  power.       In  833   the  same  sons    again  rebelled. 
This  time  Lewis's  troops  went  over  almost  in  a  body  to 
the    rebels ;    and    Lothar    not    only    proclaimed    himself 
Emperor,  but  put  his  father  in  a  monastery,  and  afterwards 
made  him  appear  before  a  public  Assembly  and  confess  a 
long  list  of  crimes.     Lewis  was  again  placed  on  the  throne  ; 
but   he    soon    brought   new  troubles   on   himself.       After 
Pippin's  death,  in   838,  he  agreed  to  an  arrangement  by 
which  the  greater  part  of  the  Empire  was  divided  between 
Lothar  and  Charles  (afterwards  called    The  Bald),  while 
Bavaria  alone  was  left  subject  to  Lewis.      The  latter  at 
once  took  up  arms.     While  the  Emperor  was  trying  to  put 
down   this  new  rebellion,   he   was   overtaken   by  illness. 


38 


THE  TREATY  OF  VERDUN, 


[CH.  v.] 


He  retired  to  an  islet  on  the  Rhine  near  Ingclheim,  and 

there,  in  840,  died. 

II.  The   Treaty  of  Verdun.— Lothar  took  the  Imperial 
title,  but  war  at  once  broke  out  between  him  and  his 
brothers  Lewis  and  Charles,  who  united  against  him.     A 
great  battle  was  fought  at /'^///^//^Ty  in  841,  in  which,  after 
fearful  slaughter,  the  aUied  brothers  gained  the  victory. 
At  last,  in  843,  the  war  was  brought  to  an  end  by  the 
Treaty  of  Verdun.     Lothar,  who  kept  the  title  of  Emperor, 
received  Italy  and  a  long  narrow  strip  of  territory  reaching 
from  the  Mediterranean  to  the  North  Sea.    This  kingdom 
was  called,  after  Lothar,  Lothayingia—2.  name  which  was 
afterwards  confined  to  the  country  to  the  north  of  Burgundy. 
The  territory  to  the  west  of  Lothar's  country  was  given  to 
Charles.     It  was  called  KaroUngia,     Lewis  received  Ger- 
many, or  the   Teutonic  Kingdom.     It  reached  from  the 
Rhine  eastwards  to  the  Elbe,  the  Saal,  and  the  Bohemian 
Forest,  and  from  the  North  Sea  southwards  to  the  Alps. 
Lewis  also  received  the  three  towns.  Mains,  Speyer,  and 
Wortns ;    and  he   claimed  supremacy  over  the   Slavonic 
tribes  which  Charles  the  Great  had  conquered.    All  three 
brothers  were  called  Kings  of  the  Franks.  The  two  younger 
brothers  allowed  a  certain   pre-eminence  to   the  elder  as 
Emperor ;  but  in  reality  they  were  quite  independent  of 
him.      From  this  time  is  usually  dated  the  existence  of 
Germany  as  a  separate  kingdom. 


CHAPTER  Vt 


THE  LATER  KARLINGS. 


Wars  of  Lewis  the  German  with  the  Northmen  and  the  Slaves  (i)— 
Charles  the  Fat  becomes  King  of  Germany  and  Emperor;  de 
throned  {2)—t7ie  East  and  West  Franks  separate  {2,)—ArnulJ 
defeats  the  Northmen ;  becomes  Emperor  {^)— invasions  of  the 
Magyars  ;  Lewis  the  Chdd  defeated  {$)— feudal  tenures  in  Ger- 
many  {6)— power  of  the  feudal  lords;  private  wars  {'])— wealth 
of  the  Church  ;  good  influence  of  the  clergy  {%)— source  of  the 
Aing^s  revenue  {g)^the  Diet;  attended  by  the  nobles  (10)— 
*'Heliand"  (ll).  iJ.'-^  <^' 

I.  Lewis  the  German.— King  Lewis— called  Lewis  tht 
German— hzid  enemies  who  taxed  his  strength  to  the  utmost. 
Even  in  the  days  of  Charles  the  Great,  Scandinavian  pirates, 
or  Northmen,  as  they  were  called,  threatened  the  northern 
coasts  of  Europe.   The  fame  of  Charles  kept  them  in  check; 
but  after  his  death  they  became  more  bold,  and  spread 
alann  through  a  great  part  of  Europe.     Their  plan  was  to 
enter  the  larger  rivers  in  shallow  boats,  attack  the  towns 
they  passed,  and  seize  all  the  booty  on  which  they  could 
lay  their  hands.     They  even  carried  their  skiffs  sometimes 
to  inland  streams,  and  appeared  suddenly  where  they  were 
not  in  the  least  expected.     They  were  not  only  heathens, 
bnV  appear  to  have  hated  Christianity,  for  they  never  spared 
churches  and  monasteries.     During  the  reign  of  Charles  the 
Bald  alone  they  twice  sailed  to  Paris,  where  they  gave 
themselves  up  to  every  excess.     Lewis  the  German  also 


THE  LATER  KARLINGS, 


[CHAP. 


V 


luid  to  resist  them.  He  did  his  utmost  to  protect  his  king- 
dom ;  but  all  his  efforts  could  not  prevent  the  invaders 
from  doing  much  harm.  About  847  a  large  body  of 
them  sailed  up  the  Elbe  to  Hamburg,  and  burned  greater 
part  of  the  town.  The  Emperor  Lewis  had  founded  an 
archiepiscopal  See  in  Hamburg,  which  was  to  be  the  centre 
of  the  northern  missions.  The  Archbishop  now  (led  to 
Brernen,  which  henceforth  became  the  scat  of  the  northern 
archbishoprick  of  Germany.  Besides  resisting  the  North- 
men, King  Lewis  was  often  at  war  with  the  Slaves  ;  he  also 
had  quarrels  with  Charles  the  Bald,  who  was  always  trying 
to  add  to  his  kingdom,  and  got  himself  crowned  Emperor 
in  875.     Lewis  died  suddenly  in  Frankfurt  in  876. 

2.  Charles  the  Fat.— Lewis's  son,  Charles  the  Fat,  at 
first  reigned  in  Germany  along  with  his  elder  brothers, 
Carlman  and  Lewis;  but  after  their  death  he  became  sole 
German  King.  He  also  became  King  of  Italy,  and  received 
from  the  Pope  the  Imperial  crown.  In  884  the  West  Franks, 
who  were  never  in  greater  need  of  a  powerful  ruler,  elected 
him  to  their  vacant  throne.  If  we  except  th^  kingdom  of 
Burgundy,  which  had  passed  into  the  hands  of  Charles  the 
Bald's  brother-in-law,  Duke  Doso,  almost  the  whole  of  the 
Empire  of  Charles  the  Great  was  now  re-united  under 
Charles  the  Fat.  The  Northmen  poured  into  his  dominions 
at  many  points,  and  in  885  appeared  a  third  time  before 
Paris.  They  were  bravely  resisted ;  but  the  Emperor, 
instead  of  helping  Paris,  was  mean  enough  to  buy  off  the 
enemy  by  paying  a  large  sum.  Charles  was  so  weak  a 
ruler  that,  at  an  Assembly  held  at  Tribur  in  8S7,  he  was 
dethroned.     He  then  retired  to  a  monastery,  and  died  in 

888.  \ 

3.  Separation  of  the  East  and  West  Franks.  —  The 
KaroUngian  Empire  now  fell  to  pieces.  The  Eastern  and 
Western  kingdoms  were  never  again  joined  together  ;  and 


rL]      LEWLS  THE  CHLLD.     THE  HUNGARIANS.        ^i 


^ 


) 


for  a  time  Italy  and  Burgundy  were  also  separated  from 
Germany.  The  King  of  Germany  was  still  called  Kittg  oj 
the  East  Franks;  but  East  Francia,  or  Franconia,  was 
only  one  part,  although  at  this  time  the  leading  part,  of  the 
German  kingdom.  It  took  in  the  basins  of  the  Main,  the 
Neckar,  and  the  Lahn.  To  the  north  were  Saxo7iy  and 
Thuringia,  and  to  the  south  and  south-east  Aleviannia  or 
SwabiUy  and  Bojoaria  or  Bavaria.  As  yet  Lotharingia  did 
not  belong  •  decidedly  either  to  the  Eastern  or  Western 
kingdom. 

4.  Arnulf. — The  successor  of  Charles  the  Fat  in  Germany 
was  his  brother  Carlmans's  illegitimate  son,  Arnulf.  This 
brave  King  won  great  fame  by  defeating  the  Northmen  at 
Uiwen  in  891.  After  this  Germany  was  comparatively 
little  troubled  by  the  Scandinavian  sea-robbers.  In  894. 
Arnulf  went  to  Italy,  and,  having  taken  Rome,  was 
crowned  Emperor.  He  had,  however,  no  real  power  \v 
Italy,  and  soon  returned  to  Germany,  where  he  died  in  899  >vi*, 
--  5.  Lewis  the  Child.  The  Hungarians. — Arnulf  was  suc- 
ceeded by  his  son,  Lewis  the  Child.  The  short  reign  of 
Lewis  was  one  of  the  most  unhappy  in  the  history  of 
Germany.  A  Turanian  race,  called  Magyars  or  Hun- 
garians, had  now  begun  to  settle  in  the  country  formerly 
held  by  the  Avars.  They  had  helped  Arnulf  in  a  war  he 
carried  on  with  the  Moravians  ;  but  almost  immediately 
after  his  death  they  invaded  Germany,  and  year  after  year 
they  came  back  during  the  whole  of  Lewis's  reign.  As  they 
fought  on  horseback,  while  the  Germans  for  the  most  part 
fought  on  foot,  the  latter  were  defeated  in  nearly  every 
battle.  The  people  had  almost  no  means  of  sheltering 
themselves,  for  as  yet  there  were  few  towns  in  Germany,  so 
that  multitudes  were  slain,  and  others  were  driven  into 
Hungary  as  captives.  The  Hungarians  were  a  fierc 
people,   and  always   made  a  desert   of  the   country   tb 


/ 


V 


THE  LATER  KARLINGS, 


[chap. 


passed  through.  In  910  Lewis  made  a  great  effort  to  drive 
them  back,  but  he  was  defeated  and  compelled  to  pay 
tribute.  He  died  in  the  following  year  ;  and  with  him 
ended  in  Germany  the  Karolingian  dynasty. 

6.  Feudalism  in  Germany.— The  old  constitution  of  Ger- 
many had  now  almost  altogether  died  out.     We  have  seen 
that  Charles  the  Great  did  away  with  the  ducal  title  in 
Germany.     After  his  time  strong  local  governors  were  so 
much  needed  that  Dukes  began  again  to   be   appointed. 
Thus  at  the  time  we  have  now  reached,  or  soon  afterwards, 
each  of  the  great  groups  or  confederations  of  tribes  had  its 
own  Duke.     The   Dukes  generally  sprang  from  the  old 
ducal  families  ;  but  they  now  held  their  Duchies  in  fief  of 
the  King.    That  is,  they  were  his  men,  and  swore  to  be 
faithful  to  him  ;  and  in  return  he  undertook  to  protect  them 
in  their  lands  and  offices.     Beneath  the  Dukes  were  the 
Margraves,  Counts,  and  other  great  fief-holders  within  the 
Duchies.     These  held  the  same  relation  to  the  Dukes  that 
the  Dukes  held  to  the  King,  and  had,  or  might  have,  many 
vassals  under  them.     The  great  feudal  lords  were  looked 
on  as  noble,  and  had  quite  taken  the  place  of  the  old  noble 
class  spoken  of  by  Tacitus.    There  were  now  very  few 
powerful  freemen  in  Germany.     During  the  reign  of  Charles 
the  Great  many  had  become  vassals  of  great  lords,  because 
the  service  they  had  to  render  as  vassals  was  not  so  hard  as 
that  which  Charles  required  of  freemen  in  order  to  carry  on 
his  many  wars.     In  the  time  of  confusion  which  followed 
his  reign,  some  were  forced  by  powerful  neighbours  to 
change  the  free  tenure  of  their  lands  into  a  feudal  tenure  ; 
others  made  the  change  of  their  own  will,  in  order  to  obtain 
protection  against  great  nobles  or  foreign  invaders.     Many 
freemen  who  did  not  become  feudal  tenants,  but  who  were 
unable  to  protect  themselves,  lost  their  freedom  altogether. 
Thus  the  class  which  had  once  formed  the  chief  strength 


VI.I 


POSITION  OF  THE  KING. 


43 


of  the  State  became  less  and  less  important,  till  at  last 
free  communities  no  longer  existed  except  in  towns  and 
in  districts  where  they  could  not  easily  be  subdued,  as 
among  the  valleys  of  the  Alps  and  along  the  shores  of  the 
North  Sea.  The  lowest  class  in  the  State  was  made  up  of 
tributary  and  dependant  peasants,  and  of  serfs  who  usually 
passed  with  the  land  from  one  master  to  another. 

7.  Position    of    the    King.      Private   War.— Feudalism 
having  thus   taken   the   place   of  the   old   constitution   in 
Germany,  the  King  was  now  much  more  the  head  of  a 
great  aristocracy  than  the  sovereign  of  a  nation.     There 
was  still  a  royal  tribunal,  presided  over  by  the  Palsgrave ; 
but  each  great  feudal  lord  had  his  own  court,  in  which  he 
administered  justice  according  to  local  customs.     When  his 
vassals  were  faithful  to  him,  the  King  was  still  very  power- 
ful ;  but  the  Dukes  usually  gave  him  service  unwillingly, 
unless  they  had  some  end  of  their  own  to  gain.     On  the 
other  hand,  the  Margraves,  Counts,  and  others  treated  the 
Dukes   in  this   respect  exactly  as  the  Dukes  treated  the 
tling.    When  any  of  the  nobles  fell  out,  they  rarely  settled 
their  quarrel  peacefully.     Every  good   King  tried  to  put 
down  private  war;   and  some  succeeded,  or  nearly  suc- 
ceeded, for  a  time.     But  the  nobles  always  returned  to  the 
custom' when  the  weakness  of  the  Government  gave  them  a 
chance  of  doing  so,  and  in  the  end  it  became  one  of  their 

chief  rights. 

8.  The  Church.— As  Germany  had  now  been  for  some 
time  nominally  Christian,  there  were  bishopricks  and 
monasteries  in  all  parts  of  the  land.  Among  the  chief 
monasteries  were  those  of  St.  Gallen,  Fulda,  and  Corvey. 
The  See  of  Mainz  remained  the  head  Church.  Many  lands 
had  been  given  to  the  Church  by  Kings,  Emperors,  and 
rich  nobles.  These  lands  were  not  taxed.  When  held, 
however,  by  a  feudal  tenure,  the  holder  had  usually  to  aid 


44 


THE  LATER  K A  RUNGS, 


[CH.  VI.  1 


his  superior  in  war.  Sometimes  the  Archbishops,  Bishops, 
and  Abbots  even  appeared  in  the  field  at  the  head  of  their 
vassals.  The  ecclesiastical  lords  were  more  numerous,  and 
had  more  secular  power,  in  Germany  than  in  any  other 
country.  Some  of  the  clergy  were  as  rude  and  ignorant 
as  the  laity,  but  this  was  not  usually  the  case.  For  cen- 
turies they  were  the  only  class  that  made  any  pretensions 
to  learning,  and  as  a  rule  they  tried  to  soften  the  manners 
of  the  nobles,  and  to  shield  the  weak  and  oppressed  against 
the  tyranny  of  the  strong. 

9.  The  revenue  of  the  King. — The  King  drew  his  revenue 
from  the  crown  lands,  which  lay  chietly  along  the  Rhine, 
and  from  customs,  tolls,  the  right  of  coining,  and  other 
royal  dues.  He  was  not  allowed  to  keep  fiefs  which  he  had 
held  before  being  made  King,  nor  could  he  add  vacant  fiefs 
to  the  crown  lands. 

10.  The  Diet. — There  were  now  very  few  meetings  of  the 
people  in  Germany.  An  Assembly  or  Diet,  however,  met 
the  King  at  certain  times  to  consult  with  him  on  the  affairs 
of  the  State.  Ordinary  freemen  no  longer  attended  it.  It 
was  made  up  of  the  leading  nobles,  secular  and  spiritual. 
This  Diet  existed,  in  one  form  or  another,  till  the  German 
Kingdom  was  broken  up. 

11.  Literature. — The  old  heathen  poetry  treating  of  the 
famous  deeds  of  heroes  did  not  die  out  for  a  long  time  after 
Germany  became  Christian  ;  but  poems  on  ^Christian  sub- 
jects began  a'.so  to  be  written.  Of  these  the  best  was 
"  Heliand,"  a  poem  telling  the  story  of  the  Gospels  in  a 
clear  and  forcible  style.  It  is  in  a  Low-Dutch  dialect,  and 
is  said  to  have  been  written  by  a  Saxon  poet  at  the  rec^uest 
of  Lqwis  the  Pious. 


\ 


CHAPTER  VIL 


THE  SAXON  EMPERORS. 

Conrad  of  Franconla  elected  King;  his  army  defeated  by  Henry  of 
Saxony;  his  deaih  {i)— Henry  I.  elected  {2)-Hcnry  I.  defeats 
the  Hungarians;  seizes  Lotharingia ;  his  wars  with  the  Duke 
of  Bohemia,  the   Wends,  and  the  Dalies  (s)-Henry  I.  builds 
towns  and  fortresses  {4)— death   of  Henry  I.    {^)— election   of 
Otto  I. ;  he  puts  down  a  rebellion ;  gives  Duchies  to  members 
of  his  family  {6)— wars  with  the  Danes  and  Slaves  {l)— first 
expedition  into  Italy;  Otto  1.  puts  down  a  second  rebellion  (8)— 
defeat  of  the  Hungarians  {9)— Otto  I.  becomes  King  of  Lombardy^ 
and  Emperor  {10)— effects  of  the  connexion  of  Germany  with 
the  Empire  {II)— Otto  II.  craiuned  as  Co-Imperator ;  death  of 
Otto  I.   {\2)—Pr(yviiu:ial  Palsgraves  {it,)— rebellion  of  Henry 
the  Wrangler;  wars  of  Otto  II.  ;  his  death  (14)-^^^  rule  of 
TheopJian5;  Austria  given  to  Leopold  L  {\l)—Otio  III.;  his 
schemes;    death   {\(^)—war  of  Henry  IL    with   the  Duke  of 
Poland;  his  friendliness  to  the  Church  {i'])—the  title  of  ''King 
of  the  Romans"  {\%)—Fiirsten  or  Princes;  castles  of  the  nobles; 
private  war  {ig)— growing  power  of  the  Church  {20)— towns^ 
increase;     the    Patricians;     the    Gilds    {21)— Literature    and 
Art  (22). 

I.  Conrad  L— After  the  death  of  Lewis  the  Child  the 
leading  nobles  met  and  elected  Conrad  of  Franconla  as 
King.  Conrad  was  in  every  way  well  fitted  for  the  throne  ; 
but  during  nearly  the  whole  of  his  reign  he  had  to  carry  on 
wars  with  his  great  vassals,  who  disliked  his  attempts  to 


46 


THE  SAXON  EMPERORS. 


[chap. 


increase  the  royal  authority.  Htmry,  Duke  of  Saxony,  was 
his  chief  opponent.  He  defeated  an  army  sent  against  him 
by  Conrad.  Conrad  was  more  successful  against  two 
Counts  who  tried  to  become  Dukes  in  Swabia  ;  he  defeated 
them,  and  put  them  to  death.  He  also  defeated  the  Duke 
of  Bavaria,  and  made  him  for  a  time  seek  refuge  among 
the  Hungarians.  In  918,  however,  whilst  carrying  on  war 
with  the  Bavarians,  Conrad  received  a  wound  of  which  he 
soon  afterwards  died.  Before  his  death  he  advised  that 
the  crown  should  be  offered  to  his  old  enemy,  Henry  of 
Saxony,  whom,  of  all  living  men,  he  saw  to  be  the  best 

fitted  to  succeed  him. 

2  Henry  I.— The  nobles  of  Franconia  met  at  Fritzlar, 
and,  carrying  out  the  wishes  of  Conrad,  elected  Henry  as 
his  successor.  Henry  is  usually  called  Henry  the  Fowler, 
from  a  tradition  that  the  messengers  who  brought  him  the 
news  of  his  election  found  him  among  the  Harz  mountains 
with  his  falcons.  The  Saxons  were  of  course  very  willing 
that  their  Duke  should  become  King  ;  but  the  Dukes  of 
Bavaria  and  Swabia  opposed  him.  Within  a  short  time, 
however,  he  was  acknowledged  by  all ;  and  he  soon  proved 
himself  the  wisest  and  strongest  King  who  had  yet  reigned 

in  Germany. 

3.  Wars  of  Henry  I.— In  Henry's  time  the  Hungarians, 
who  had  made  incursions  under  Conrad,  began  again  to  in- 
vade Germany.  In  924  one  of  their  princes  fell  into  his 
hands.  In  return  for  this  prisoner  they  granted  him  a 
truce  for  nine  years,  on  condition  that  he  should  pay  them 
tribute.  When  the  truce  was  at  an  end,  the  Hungarians 
came  back  to  Germany  ;  but  Henry  was  now  so  weU 
prepared  for  them  that  he  thoroughly  defeated  them  m  a 
great  battle,  said  to  have  been  fought  near  Mcrseburg. 
After  this  the  Hungarians  kept  in  their  own  country  while 
Hemy  lived.     The  Germans  were  so  grateful  to  their  King 


VII.I 


THE  GROWTH  OF  TOWNS. 


47 


for  the  victory  he  had  gained   that  they  greeted  him  as 
"  Imperator"  and  "  Father  of  the  Fatherland."     Before  this 
battle  Henry,  taking  advantage  of  the  confusion  in  the 
Western  kingdom,  had  seized  Lotharingia,  and  given  it  to 
a  Duke  who  held  it  as  a  fief  of  the  German  crown.     For 
centuries  after  his  time  Lotharingia  remained  part  of  the 
German  kingdom.      Henry  had   also   had  much   fighting 
with  the  Slaves.     He  had  forced  the  Duke  of  Bohemia  to 
do  homage  for  his  Duchy,  and  had  overthrown  the  Wends, 
whose  country  lay  to  the  north-east  of  Germany.     After  the 
battle  of  Merseburg,  Henry  made  war  on  the  Danes,  who 
had  invaded  Saxony  and  Friesland.     He  not  only  drove 
them  back,  but  took  possession  of  the  lands  between  the 
Eider  and  the  Schlei. 

4.  Government  of  Henry  I.     The  Growth  of  Towns.— 
Henry  was  a  wise  ruler  as  well  as  a  brave  defender  of  his 
kingdom.     He  introduced  more  orderly  methods  of  fighting 
than  the  Germans  had  yet  known,  and,  that  they  might  be 
the  better  able  to  meet  the  Hungarians,  trained  the  nobles 
and  their  vassals  to  fight  on  horseback.     But  he  is  chiefly 
famous  as  the  founder  of  the  burgher  class.     He  saw  how 
necessary  it  was,  if  the  Germans  were  to  be  safe  against 
such  an  enemy  as   the  Hungarians,  that  there  should  be 
strong  places  in  which  they  could  take  refuge  if  they  were 
defeated.     He  therefore  built  walls  round  the  towns  which 
already  existed,  and  founded  new  towns.      He  also  built 
many  fortresses,  around  which  towns  gradually  grew  up. 
Every  ninth  freeman  was  compelled  to  live  in  the  nearest 
town  or  fortress  as  a  defender  and  builder,  while  the  re- 
maining eight  maintained  him,  and  laid  up  stores  against 
time  of  need  by  giving  a  third  of  their  produce.     Henry 
decreed  that  all  pu>)lic  meetings  and  festivities  should  take 
place   in   towns,   and   provided  for  the  administration   of 
justice  among  the   inhabitants.    Thus  e^icouraged,  townj 


»8 


THE  SAXON  EMPERORS. 


[chap. 


grew  quickly  both  during  and  after  Henr/s  time ;  and 
many  freemen  came  and  lived  in  them.  A  new  class,  that 
of  burghers,  thus  gradually  arose  in  Germany.  They  were 
the  great  trading  class  of  the  country,  and  soon  became  the 
best  friends  of  the  Kings  in  their  quarrels  with  the  nobles. 

5.  Death  of  Henry  I. — When  Henry  had  defeated  all  his 
enemies,  he  thought  of  going  to  Rome  to  claim  the  Imperial 
crown  ;  but  he  was  never  able  to  do  so.  In  935  he  fell 
sick,  and  next  year  he  died  at  Memleben.  Before  his  death 
he  had  summoned  a  Diet  at  Erfurt^  and  got  the  nobles  to 
promise  that  they  would  recognize  his  son   Otto  as  his 

successor. 

6.  Otto   I.— In  accordance  with  the  promise  given   to 
Henry  by  the  nobles,  Otto  was  elected  and  crowned  King 
at  Aachen  in  936.     He  was  twenty-four  years  of  age  when 
he  began  to  reign,  and  had  been  married  during  his  father's 
life-time  to  Eadgyth   or  Edith,  daughter  of  the   English 
King  Edward,  and  granddaughter  of  Alfred.     Henry  had 
added  so  much  to  the  kingly  power  that  at  Otto's  corona- 
tion the  Dukes  for  the  first  time  performed  the  nominally 
menial    offices   of  the   royal   household.      The   Duke   of 
Lotharingia  acted  as  chamberlain;  the  Duke  of  Franconia 
as  carver;  the  Duke  of  Swabia  as  cup-bearer;  and  the 
Duke  of  Bavaria  as   master  of  the  horse.       In   a  short 
time,   however,  the  Dukes  of  Franconia  and    Lotharingia 
joined  Thankmar,  Otto's  half-brother,  in  a  rebellion  against 
the   young    King.      Thankmar  was   soon   slain  ;    but  his 
place   was   taken   by  the  King's   full  brother   Henry,  who 
had  always  hankered  after  the  crown.      Otto  fought  bravely 
m  defence  of  his  rights,  and  he  was  at  last  victorious.     The 
Dukes  of  Franconia  and  Lotharingia  both  fell,  and  Henry, 
after  being  several  times  forgiven,  submitted.     He  received 
the  Duchy  of  Bavaria,  which  fell  vacant  in  945  ;  and  he 
greatly  distinguished  himself  by  his  attacks  on  the  Hun- 


VII.] 


WARS  OF  OTTO  L 


49 


garians.     Otto  kept  the  Duchy  of  Franconia  in  his  own 
hands,  and  gave  that  of  Lotharingia  to  Coimt  Conrad,  who 
afterwards  married  Luitgard,  Otto's  only  daughter.     When, 
in  949,  Duke  Hermann  of  Swabia  died,  Otto's  son  Ludolf, 
who  had  married  Hermann's  daughter,  was  appointed  his 
successor.     All  the  great  Duchies  were  thus  brought  into 
the  hands  either  of  Otto  himself  or  of  members   of  his 
family,  so  that  he  became  very  powerful.     He  was  by  no 
means  content  to  be  a  mere  nominal  King.     The  Dukes, 
although  nearly  related  to  him,  knew,  when  doing  homage 
for  their  Duchies,  that  he  would  insist  on  his  rights  to  the 
uttermost,  and  that  he  had  sufficient  power  to  enforce  them. 
7.  Wars  of  Otto  L — Otto  was  not  only  strong  at  home  ; 
he  early  made  himself  feared  in  other  countries.  He  several 
timos  took  part  in  the  quarrels  of  the  West  Frankish  King- 
dom, and  helped  his  brother-in-law,  King  Lewis,  against 
the  Dukes  of  France  and  Normandy.     The   Danes  won 
back  for  a  time  the  territory  which  Henry  the  Fowler  had 
conquered  ;  but  Otto  made  war  on  them,  compelled  Harola 
Blue   Tooth  to  become  his  man,   and  set   up    the   Mark 
of  Schleswig  for  the  defence  of  the  German  border.     The 
T)uke  of  Poland  had  also  to  do   homage   for  his  Duchy. 
From  this  time,  till  the  thirteenth  century,  Denmark  and 
Poland    were  always  looked  on  as   fiefs   of  the  German 
crown.      Otto's  Margraves,  Her?na7in  Bilhmg  and  Gerr^ 
long  fought  bravely  against  the  Slaves,  and  won  Slavonic 
land— the  former  along  the  shores  of  the  Baltic,  the  latter 
between   the    Middle  Elbe   and  the    Oder.      In-  all  lands 
conquered  by  him,   Otto    was    careful  to  plant    German 
colonies.      He  also  founded  bishopricks,  and  used  every 
means  to  make  the  people  Christian.      In  968  he  founded 
the  archbishoprick  of  Magdeburg. 

8.    Otto   I.  in   Italy.      Rebellion  in  Germany.— In  951 
an    appeal  was  made  to  Otto  on  behalf  of  the  beautiful 


50 


THE  SAXON  EMPERORS, 


[chap. 


VII.] 


GERMANY  AND  THE  EMPIRE. 


51 


Queen  Adelheid,  whom  Bercngar,  the  Lombard  King, 
wished  to  marry  his  son  Adalbert.  Otto  went  to  Italy, 
and  as  his  wife  Edith  had  died  six  years  before,  he  married 
Queen  Adelheid.  He  took  the  title  of  King  of  the  Lom- 
bards^ but  afterwards  confirmed  Berengar  in  the  possession 
of  Lombardy  as  his  vassal.  Soon  after  this  Otto's  son 
Ludolf,  Duke  of  Swabia,  rebelled  ;  and  he  was  joined  by 
Conrad  of  Lotharingia,  the  Archbishop  of  Mainz,  and 
other  nobles.  After  much  fighting  the  rebellion  was  at 
last  put  down.  Otto  gave  the  Duchy  of  Lotharingia  to 
his  brother,  Bruno,  Archbishop  of  Koln,  and  Swabia  to 
Burchard,  the  son-in-law  of  Henry  of  Bavaria.  William, 
Otto's  eldest  son,  having  entered  the  Church,  was  made 
Archbishop  of  Mainz. 

9.  Defeat  of  the  Hungarians.  —  Taking  advantage  of 
the  troubled  state  of  Germany,  the  Hungarians  had  again 
begun  to  invade  the  country.  In  955  they  entered  Bavaria 
in  vast  numbers.  Otto  had  now  put  down  Ludolf's  rebellion, 
and  was  able  to  turn  his  whole  strength  against  the  enemy. 
A  great  battle  was  fought  on  the  banks  of  the  Lech,  near 
Augsburg.  Otto  encouraged  his  troops  by  taking  direct 
part  in  the  battle,  and  he  was  bravely  seconded  by  Conrad, 
who  wished  t*  wipe  out  the  memory  of  his  rebellion  against 
his  father-in-law.  At  last  the  Hungarians  had  to  fly,  and 
many  thousands  of  them  were  slain.  The  victory  was  dearly 
bought,  for  Conrad  and  many  other  nobles  fell.  But  the 
end  was  worth  the  sacrifice.  By  this  victory  Otto  com- 
nleted  the  work  which  his  father  had  begun.  The  Hun- 
garians  now  ceased  to  invade  Germany,  and  till  the 
thirteentli  century  their  Kings  were  usually,  at  least  in 
name,  subject  to  the  German  Kings. 

N^io.  Otto  L  becomes  Emperor.— In  961  Otto's  young 
son  Otto  was  crowned  King  in  Aachen.  The  elder  Otto 
then  went  to  Italy,  which  had  again  fallen  into  confusion. 


During  this  second  visit  he  caused  himself  to  be  crowned 
King  of  Lombardy,  and  on  February  2,  962,  he  was  crowned 
Roman  Emperor  by  the  Pope.  His  three  immediate  pre- 
decessors on  the  Gennan  throne  had  been  neither  Kings  of 
Lombardy  nor  Emperors  ;  but  from  this  time  the  German 
Kings  claimed  as  their  right  both  the  Lombard  and  the 
Imperial  crowns.  Otto  and  his  successors  thought  very 
little  of  their  royal  as  compared  with  their  Imperial  title. 
They  still  remained  German  Kings  ;  but  after  their  corona- 
tion at  Rome  they  were  usually  thought  and  spoken  ot 
only  as  Emperors.  An  Emperor  held  a  much  higher 
position  than  a  mere  feudal  Sovereign,  and  claimed  from 
his  subjects  a  more  thorough  submission. 

II.  Effects  of  the  connexion  of  Germany  with  the 
Empire. — The  connexion  of  the  German  kingdom  with 
the  Empire  had  many  important  results  in  Germany. 
Up  to  Otto's  time  there  had  been  very  little  truly  national 
feeling  among  the  Gennans.  They  thought  of  them- 
selves as  Franks,  Saxons,  Swabians,  and  so  forth  ; 
hardly  at  all  as  a  united  people.  But  when  their  Kings 
acquired  the  right  to  be  crowned  Roman  Emperors  they 
themselves  became  the  Imperial  race.  They  began,  there- 
fore, to  take  pride  in  the  common  German  name.  A 
feeling  of  nationality  was  thus  aroused,  which  never  after- 
wards quite  left  the  Germans  even  in  their  darkest  periods. 
On  the  whole,  however,  Germany  was  not  the  better 
for  its  connexion  with  the  Empire.  By  being  Emperors 
the  German  Kings  became  involved  in  struggles  with  which 
their  native  kingdom  had  nothing  to  do.  They  thus 
wasted  much  German  blood  and  treasure ;  and  they  lost 
almost  all  real  power.  Whilst  they  were  absent,  some- 
times for  years  at  a  time,  carrying  on  distant  wars,  their 
great  vassals  at  home  ruled  as  sovereign  princes  within 
their  dominions.    When  the  Emperors  returned^  and  tried 


52 


THE  SAXON  EMPERORS. 


[chap. 


VII.] 


OTTO  II. 


53 


to  assert  their  right  as  feudal  Kings,  they  too  often  found 
that  they  had  spent  nearly  all  their  strength,  and  could  do 
very  little  against  a  united  and  powerful  aristocracy.  Ger- 
many was  thus  kept  from  growing  up,  like  France  and 
England,  into  a  firm  monarchy,  and  was  in  the  end  divided 
into  many  practically  independent  small  States. 

12.  Coronation  of  Otto  II.  as  Emperor.  Death  of 
Otto  I.— The  last  years  of  Otto's  life  were  spent  almost 
wholly  in  Italy,  where  he  exercised  to  the  full  his  Imperial 
rights.  In  967  King  Otto  was  crowned  Emperor,  and  from 
that  time  reigned  as  "  Co-Imperator"  with  his  father. 
He  was  married  in  972  to  Thcophano^  the  daughter  of  the 
Eastern  Emperor  Nicephoriis.  In  the  same  year  the  elder 
Otto  returned  to  Germany,  where  he  died  in  973.  During 
his  lifetime  he  had  been  called  Otto  the  Great,  and  he 
deserved  the  title,  for  he  began  an  important  epoch  in 
history  and  raised  his  country  to  a  great  height  of  splendour. 

13.  Provincial  Palsgraves.— One  of  the  institutions  of 
Otto  which  exercised  considerable  influence  on  the  future 
of  Germany  was  that  of  provincial  Palsgraves.  These  officers 
managed  the  royal  lands  and  dues,  and  dispensed  justice 
in  the  name  of  the  sovereign.  They  thus  helped  to  deprive 
the  Dukes  of  some  of  their  importance.  But  they  them- 
selves were  sometimes  unfaithful  servants.  In  the  troubled 
periods  through  which  Germany  after^vards  passed  thgy 
often  seized  the  royal  lands  and  established  themselves 
as  independent  feudal  lords. 

14.  Otto  II. — Otto  II.  was  at  the  time  of  his  father's 
death  nineteen  years  old.  He  had  much  of  his  father's 
decision  of  character  ;  but  he  did  not  live  long  enough  to 
do  all  that  he  was  capable  of  doing.  He  had  not  long 
reigned  alone  when  He7iry  the  Wrangler,  of  Bavaria, 
son  of  the  Henry  who  had  so  often  rebelled  against  Otto  I., 
revolted.    The  rebellion  was  soor   put  down,  and  Henry 


i/ 


himself  was  imprisoned  and  deprived  of  his  Duchy.     King 
Harold    of   Denmark,    and  the  Dukes    of  Bohemia  and 
Poland,   all   tried  to  make  themselves  independent  ;    but 
they  were  compelled,  one  after  another,  to  submit.     In  978, 
when   Otto  was  in  Aachen,   Lothar,   the  West   Prankish 
King,  suddenly  tried  to  seize  Lotharingia.     Aachen  was 
taken  ;    and  Otto  had  just  time  to  escape.      A   Diet  was 
at   once   summoned,   and   the   nobles   willingly   agreed  to 
support  Otto  in  winning  back  the  Duchy.      At  the  head 
of  a   considerable   army   he   entered   the    West   Frankish 
kingdom,   and    marched    towards    Paris.      The   Germans 
encamped  on   Montmartre,  but  as  winter  came  on  they 
had  to  return  home  without  having  taken  the  city.     In  the 
end,  however,  Lothar  gave  up  all  claim  to   Lotharingia. 
In  980,  the  Emperor,  whose  sympathies  were  always  more 
Italian  than  German,  went  to  Italy  ;  and  he  never  returned. 
Having  tried  to  conquer  Southern  Italy,  he  was  defeated  in 
982,  and  next  year  he  died  at  Rome.      Before  his  death  he 
had  summoned  a  Diet  at  Verona,  where  his  infant  son  Otto 
had  been  elected  his  successor.     The  Wends  had  revolted 
during  his  absence,  and  destroyed  several  Episcopal  Sees 
in  the  north. 

15.  Regency  of  Theophano. — While  Otto  III.  was  a 
child,  his  mother  Theophano  acted  as  Regent.  Henry  of 
Bavaria  having  been  set  free  at  once  took  the  field,  and 
for  a  time  he  got  possession  of  the  young  King's  person. 
He  would  perhaps  have  seized  the  throne,  but  the  chiet 
nobles  remained  loyal.  Willigis,  a  wheelwright's  son  who 
had  risen  to  the  position  of  Archbishop  of  Mainz,  and  the 
Dukes  of  Swabia,  Saxony,  and  Bavaria,  all  q^posed  Henry's 
claims.  At  last,  in  984,  he  gave  Otto  back  to  Theophano, 
and  became  so  thoroughly  reconciled  to  the  dynasty  that 
his  Duchy  was  restored  to  him.  During  Theophano's 
administration,  the  frontiers,  except  in  the  north,  were  weU 


54 


THE  SAXON  EMPERORS, 


[CHAP. 


defemlcd.  She  gave  the  Mark  of  Austria  to  Leopold  I, 
of  the  house  of  Babenberg.  Leopold  conquered  a  good 
deal  of  Hungarian  territoiy,  and  peopled  it  with  German 
colonists.  Frjir:  this  time  the  house  of  Babenberg  held 
the  Austrian  lands  till  the  family  died  out  in  the  thirteenth 
century. 

1 6.  Otto  III. — Otto  had  various  tutors,  but  by  far  the 
most  distinguished  was  Gcrbert^  the  profoundest  scholar 
and  most  ambitious  thinker  of  his  age.  Under  him  the 
youthful  King  made  so  much  progress  that  he  was  called 
The  Wonder  of  the  World.  In  996,  when  he  was  scarcely 
sixteen,  he  went  to  Rome  with  an  army  drawn  from  all 
parts  of  Germany,  and  was  crowned  Emperor.  Three 
years  afterwards  he  raised  Gcrbert  to  the  Papal  See.  The 
young  Emperor  was  veiy  little  of  a  German.  He  was 
dreamy  and  imaginative,  and  early  fomied  the  idea  of 
making  Rome  once  more  the  centre  of  the  world,  with 
Germany  as  a  mere  province  of  the  Empire.  His  vague 
schemes,  however,  were  suddenly  cut  short  by  his  death 
near  Rome  in  1002.  In  the  year  1000,  when  in  Aachen, 
he  had  opened  the  tomb  of  Charles  the  Great,  whose  body, 
dressed  in  Imperial  robes,  still  sat  on  its  marble  throne. 
Otto's  body  was,  in  accordance  with  his  own  request, 
carried  to  Aachen,  and  buried  beside  that  of  Charles. 

17.  Henry  II. — Henry ^  Duke  of  Bavaria,  son  of  Henry 
the  Wrangler,  was  nearest  of  kin  to  the  Saxon  dynasty. 
His  claim  to  the  throne  was  for  some  time  disputed,  but 
in  1003  he  was  generally  acknowledged  King.  During  the 
reigns  of  Otto  II.  and  Otto  III.  the  great  nobles  had  been 
making  themselves  more  independent,  so  that  Henry  had 
much  difficulty  in  getting  his  authority  recognized.  He 
had  also  to  put  down  rebellions  in  the  States  subject  to 
Germany.  Boleslaiv  Chrobry^  Duke  of  Poland,  had  con- 
quered Bohemia  and  Silesia.     For  fourteen  ycais  war  raged 


VII.] 


"  KING  OF  THE  ROMANS. 


»» 


55 


between  Henry  and  this  powerful  vassal.  In  the  end, 
Boleslaw  had  to  give  up  Bohemia  and  Meissen,  and  to  do 
homage  to  Henry ;  but  he  was  virtually  independent,  and 
after  Henry's  death  he  caused  himself  to  be  proclaimed 
King  of  Poland.  In  1004  Henry  had  become  King  01 
Italy  ;  and  in  1014  he  was  crowned  Emperor.  He  was 
a  devoted  friend  of  the  Church,  and  treated  it  so  generously 
that  he  was  afterwards  called  "  Saint."  He  died  in  1024, 
and  was  buried   in  Bamberg,   where  he    had  founded  a 

bishoprick. 

18.  The  Title  of  "King  of  the  Romans."— Up  to  the 
time  of  Henry  II.  the  German  Kings  were  called  "  Kings 
of  the  East  Franks"  or  "Kings  of  the  Franks  and  Saxons." 
They  did  not  become  Emperors  till  they  had  been  crowned 
at  Rome.  Henry  II.  did  not  venture  any  more  than  his 
predecessors  t )  call  himself  Emperor  until  he  had  received 
the  Imperial  crown  from  the  Pope  ;  but  he  was  anxious 
to  establish  the  principle  that  as  German  King  he  had 
the  right  of  sovereignty  over  Rome.  He  therefore  took 
the  title  of  "  King  of  the  Romans."  This  afterwards  became 
the  recognized  title  of  the  German  Kings  before  their  coron- 
ation as  Emperors. 

19.  The  Nobles.— The  highost  class  of  nobles  were  now 
called  Fmsten  or  Princes.  Henry  II.  had  done  his  utmost 
to  make  this  class  submissive  ;  but  he  had  only  been  partly 
successful.  They  were  not  for  some  time  yet  to  become 
almost  independent  sovereigns  ;  but  during  the  reigns  of 
the  Ottos,  whose  duties 'as  Emperors  had  taken  them  so 
much  out  of  Germany,  they  had  already  done  something 
towards  gaining  this  end.  At  the  head  of  the  secular 
princes  were  the  Dukes  ;  after  them  came  the  Palsgraves? 
and  Margraves.  Every  prince  and  noble  now  lived  in  a 
castle  or  tower.  These  buildings  were  usually  very  cheer- 
less ;  but  tlicy  were  strong,  and  it  was  chiefly  to  serve  as 


56 


THE  SAXON  EMPERORS, 


[CHAP. 


Strongholds  that  they  were  built.  They  were  commonly 
built  on  some  high  hill  or  other  site  where  they  could  not 
be  easily  reached,  and  where  they  commanded  a  good  view 
of  the  neighbouring  country.  The  custom  of  private  war- 
fare was  now  very  common  ;  and  for  centuries  after  this 
time  it  was  a  source  of  great  suffering  to  all  classes. 

20.  The  Church. — The  connexion  of  Germany  with  the 
Empire  had  added  very  greatly  to  the  power  of  the  Church, 
for  the  Emperor  was  its  secular  head,  and  felt  himself 
bound  to  support  and  strengthen  it  It  now  possessed 
about  half  the  land  of  Germany  ;  and  the  great  prelates 
held  princely  rank.  There  were  six  archbishopricks— those 
of  Mainz,  Kbln,  Trier,  Bremen,  Magdebur(^,  and  Salzburg. 
The  Archbishop  of  Mainz,  as  Primate  of  Germany,  was 
the  first  spiritual  prince  ;  next  in  rank  to  him  were  the 
Archbishops  of  Koln  and  Trier.  The  Saxon  Emperors, 
in  adding  to  the  power  of  the  Church,  doubtless  wished, 
like  Charles  the  Great,  to  lessen  that  of  the  aristocracy. 
But  in  the  end  the  spiritual  princes  proved  as  dangerous  as 
the  secular  princes.  In  the  struggle  which  at  a  later  time 
arose  between  the  Empire  and  the  Papacy,  they  rarely 
hesitated  to  side  with  the  Papacy. 

21.  The  Tovyns. — Many  towns  had  been  built  since  the 
time  of  Henry  the  Fowler.  They  grew  up  chiefly  around 
cathedrals,  monasteries,  Jortresses,  and  the  castles  of  great 
nobles.  They  were  divided  into  two  classes— those  which 
were  immediately  dependant  on  the  crown,  and  those 
which  were  dependant  on  some  mediate  lord.  In  each  town 
there  was  a  Burgrave  or  Bailiff,  who  represented  the  King 
or  other  lord  of  the  town,  and  administered  justice.  The 
old  families  of  the  towns  kept  themselves  apart  from  the 
new-comers,  and  were  afterwards  called  Patricians,  In 
some  towns  this  class  was  soon  allowed  to  choose  coun- 
cillors who  helped  the  Bailiffs  in  their  duties  ;  and  in  the 


VII.] 


LITERA  TURE  AND  ART. 


57 


end  they  tried,  especially  in  the  immediate  towns,  to  get  rid 
of  the  Bailiffs  altogether.  The  tradespeople  formed  them- 
selves into  Gilds,  which  at  first  had  nothing  to  do  with 
politics,  but   afterwards  became  of  great  political  impor- 

22.*  Literature  and  Art.— In  the  time  of  Otto  I.,  Arch- 
bishop  Bruno  founded   a  famous   school   in    Koln;    and 
Hroswitha,  perhaps  a  relative  of  the   royal  house,  wrote 
in  the  nunnery  of  Gandersheim  well-known  comedies  in  the 
style  of  Terence.     Otto  II.  and  Otto  III.,  partly  through 
the   influence   of  Adclheid  and  Theophano,  did   a   good 
deal  to  encourage  learning.     They  founded  schools,  and 
got  famous  scholars,  like  Gerbert,   to  come  and  stay  at 
their  court.     But  Latin,  not  German,  was  the  language  m 
which  all  works  of  importance  were  written.     The  Saxon 
Kings    built    many    churches,    chiefly    in    the    so-called 
Romanesque    style;    and   sculpture,   painting,   and    music 
were  zealously  cultivated  in  the  service  of  the  Church. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


THE  FRANCONIAN   EMPERORS. 


Election  of  Count  Conrad  {i) — good  government  of  Conrad  II.  (2) 
— Conrad  II,  crowned  King  of  Burgundy  (3) — rebellion  of  Duke 
Ernst  of  Swabia  (4) — wars  of  Conrad  II.  (5) — all  fiefs  made 
hereditary ;  death  of  Conrad  11.  (6) — strong  government  of 
Henry  III.;  he  proclaims  a  general  peace^  and  encourages 
learning  (7) — wars  of  Henry  III.  (8) — Henry  III.  and  the 
Papacy  ;  his  death  (9) — iveak  government  of  Agnes  (10) — Henry 
IV.  falls  into  the  hands  first  of  Ilanno^  Archbishop  of  /Coin  ^  and 
afterwards  of  Adalbert^  Archbishop  of  Bremen  (ll) — Henry  IV. 
irritates  the  Saxons  (12) — Bertha,  Henry  IV.^s  Queen  {13) — 
the  Saxons  rebel ;  are  for  a  time  triumphant ;  defeated  (14) — 
Henry  IV.  and  Gregory  VII.  (15) — Henry  IV.  humbled  by 
Gregory  VII.  {16) — Rudolf  of  Swabia  elected  Kitig ;  Gregory 
VII.  sides  with  him ;  Rudolf  slain ;  his  Duchy  given  to 
Frederick  of  Bitren  {17) — rival  Kings ;  submission  of  the 
Saxons  (18) — rebellion  of  Henry  IV.^s  sons ;  his  death  (19) — 
Henry  V.  and  the  Papacy  ;  rebellion  ;  the  Concordat  of  Worms  ; 
death  of  Henry  V.  (20) — Ki)ig  Lotliar  ;  submission  to  the  Pope ; 
Henry  the  Proud;  death  of  Lot  ha  r  (21) — loss  of  poiver  by  the 
German  Kings  {22)^groiving  importance  of  the  lower  nobility  (23) 
private  war  ;  the  Truce  of  God  (24) — robbery  (25), 

I.  Election  of  Count  Conrad. — Lotliaringia  was  now 
divided  into  two  Duchies — Upper  ?c[\di  Lower;  and  Carinthia 
had  been  taken  by  Otto  III.  from  Bavaria  and  made  a  separ- 
ate Duchy.    There  were  thus  at  this  time,  if  we  take  in  the 


[en.  VIII.] 


CONRAD  IL 


59 


Duke  of  Bohemia,  eight  Dukes  in  Germany.  These  Dukes, 
and  the  Counts  and  Prelates  of  Germany,  all  accompanied 
by  their  vassals,  now  assembled  on  the  banks  of  the  Rhine, 
between  Mainz  and  Worms,  to  elect  a  new  King.  The 
choice  of  the  Assembly  fell  on  Count  Conrad^  a  Franconian 
nobleman,  and  cousin  to  the  Duke  of  Franconia.  The  two 
cousins  spvang  from  the  Conrad  who  had  married  a  daughter 
of  Otto  I.,  and  were  thus  related  through  the  female  hne  to 
the  Saxon  dynasty. 

2.  Government  of  Conrad  II. — Conrad  II.,  who  was 
forty  years  old  at  the  time  of  his  election,  proved  a  wise  and 
firm  rulpr.  Soon  after  his  coronation  he  rode  through  the 
kingdom  administering  justice  and  severely  punishing  rob- 
bers. One  of  the  chief  objects  of  his  reign  was  to  increase 
the  power  of  the  crown  by  lessening  that  of  the  Dukes  and 
other  princes  ;  and  in  this  he  was  very  successful.  He  gave 
the  Duchies  of  Bavaria,  Swabia,  and  Carinthia,  one  after  the 
other,  in  fief  to  his  son  Henry,  who  at  an  early  period  showed 
great  strength  of  character,  and  gave  promise  of  being  able 
to  carry  out  his  father's  plans.  The  burgher  class  was  es- 
pecially friendly  to  Conrad,  for  he  favoured  the  cities,  and 
did  ever}-thing  he  could  to  make  them  look  to  the  King  as 
their  natural  protector  against  the  nobles. 

3.  The  Kingdom  of  Burgundy. — Conrad  was  crowned 
Emperor  in  1027.  The  year  before  he  had  been  crowned 
King  of  Italy.  At  his  coronation  as  Emperor  two  Kings 
were  present — Rudolf  III.  of  Burgundy,  and  C7iuf  oi 
England  and  Denmark.  Conrad  was  on  friendly  terms 
with  both  of  these  Kings.  His  son  Heniy  married  Cnuts 
daughter,  Cunihild  \  and  he  gave  up  to  Cnut  the  Mark  o^ 
Schleswig.  Rudolf,  whose  niece  Gisela  was  Conrad's 
wife,  appointed  Conrad,  as  he  had  before  appointed  Henry 
II.,  to  be  his  successor.  When  Rudolf  died,  in  1032, 
Conrad  met  with  some  resistance  in  Burgundy  ;  but  he  was 


6o 


THE  FRANCONIAN  EMPERORS. 


[chap. 


crowned  King,  and  was  soon  crenerally  acknowledged. 
This  kingdom  did  not  take  in  the  Duchy  of  Burgundy, 
which  was  a  fief  of  the  French  King.  After  Conrad's  time 
the  German  King  had  a  right  to  the  crown  of  Burgundy  ; 
but  owing  to  the  weakness  of  later  Kings  the  greater  part  of 
the  country  was  in  the  end  absorbed  by  France. 

4.    Duke   Ernst   of    Swabia.— Duke  Ernst  of  Swabia, 
who  was  the  son  of  Gisela  by  a  former  marriage,  believed 
himself  to  be  King  Rudolf's  lawful  heir.     When,  therefore, 
Rudolf    made    Conrad    his    heir,    Ernst    thought    himself 
wronged,  and  tried  to  raise  a  rebellion.     But  his  vassals 
refused  to  follow  him  against  their  King  and  Emperor,  so 
that  his  attempt  failed.     Conrad  took  his  Duchy  from  him, 
and  imprisoned  him  in  a  castle  in  Thuringia.     He  was  after- 
wards set  free  ;  and  Conrad  offered  to  give  him  back  his 
Duchy  if  he  would  tell  where   Count    Werner,  who  had 
helped  him  in  trying  to  stir  up  a  rebellion,  was  hiding. 
Ernst  generously  refused  to  do  this.     He  afterwards  joined 
Count  Werner  in  the  Black  Forest,  where  the  two  nobles 
lived  for    some    time  by    robbery.       In    1030  both  were 
killed  in  battle.     The  adventures  of  Duke  Ernst  roused  a 
great  deal  of  popular  sympathy,  and  afterwards  became  the 
subject  of  many  songs  and  legends. 

c  Wars  of  Conrad  H.— Conrad  carried  on  many  wars, 
and  always  bravely.  The  Duke  of  Bohemia  several  times 
rebelled,  but  he  was  forced  to  return  to  his  allegiance.  I  he 
Poles  invaded  Germany,  but  were  driven  back  ;  and  King 
Miesko  had  to  do  homage  for  his  crown,  and  to  give  up 
LusaHa,  which  Boleslaw  had  received  from  Henry  II. 
Conrad  also  caused  the  Slaves  on  the  banks  of  the  Oder 
and  the  Lower  Elbe  to  submit.  He  had  more  trouble  with 
King  Stephen  of  Hungary ;  but  in  1031  Conrad's  son 
Henry  made  even  this  powerful  King  accept  peace. 
6.    Edict  of  Conrad   II.      His   Death.-Conrad  visited 


VIII.] 


HENRY  III, 


61 


Italy  a  second  time  in  1037.  It  was  during  this  visit 
that  he  issued  the  famous  Edict,  in  which  he  decreed  that 
fief-holders  should  not  have  their  lands  taken  from  them 
except  by  the  judgment  of  their  peers.  All  fiefs  were  thus 
made  hereditary.  The  edict  was  meant  to  strengthen  the 
lower  vassals,  and  to  make  them  feel  that  they  owed  a 
higher  allegiance  to  the  King  than  to  their  immediate  lords. 
It  applied  at  first  only  to  Lombardy  ;  but  it  very  soon 
became  law  also  in  Germany.  Two  years  after  this  visit  to 
Italy  Conrad  died,  and  was  buried  at  Speyer,  whose  fine 
cathedral  he  had  founded. 

7.  Henry  111.— Henry  III.,  Conrad's  son,  had  already 
been  crowned  German  King  and  King  of  Burgundy.      He 
was  now  twenty-two  years  of  age,  and  had  many  of  the 
best  qualities  of  a  King.     He  continued  his  father's  policy 
towards    the  great    princes  and  the   lower    vassals,   and 
became    probably  the  strongest  i-uler  since   Charles    the 
Great.     The  Duchies  of  Bavaria,  Swabia,  and  Carinthia, 
which  he  had  received  from  his  father,  he  gave  to  princes 
who    were    content   to   act   in   all   respects  as  the  King's 
men.    The  Duchy  of  Upper  Lotharingia  having  become 
vacant,  Henry  gave  it  also  to  one  on  whose  obedience  he 
could  depend.     Gottfried,  the  Duke  of  Lower  Lotharingia, 
opposed  this  appointment  ;  but  he  was  overcome,  and  had 
to  retire  to  Italy.     Henry  did  not  use  his  great  power  for 
selfish  ends.       In    1043   he  proclaimed  a  General  Peace 
throughout  the  kingdom,  and  succeeded,  as  no  King  did 
for  centuries  after  his  time,  in  putting  down  private  war. 
He  also  encouraged  learning,  and  reformed  the  abuses  of 
the  Church,  trying  to  make  it  in  every  way  more  worthy 
of  its  great  work. 

8.  The  Hungarians. — Henry  had  to  put  down  rebellions 
in  Bohemia  and  Burgundy  ;  but  his  chief  wars  were  those 
carried  on  by  him  against  the  Hungarians.      He  defeated 


62 


THE  FRANCONIAN  EMPERORS. 


[chap. 


them  in  1044,  and  forced  them  to  recognize  King  Peter ^  who 
had  succeeded  King  Stephen,  but  had  been  deposed.  Peter 
did  homage  to  Henry  for  his  crown.  A  second  expedition 
into  Hungary  was  less  successful ;  but  in  1057  Andreas, 
who  had  in  the  meantime  become  King,  was  obliged  to  follow 
Peter's  example,  and  become  Heniy's  man.  Henry  took  the 
country  between  the  Kahlenberg  and  the  Leitha,  and  added 
it  to  the  Mark  of  Austria. 

9.  Henry  HI.  and  the  Papacy.  His  death.— In  1046 
Henry  was  crowned  Emperor  by  Clement  II.,  a  German 
whom  he  had  made  Pope  after  deposing  the  three  rival 
Popes.  He  also  took  the  old  title  of  Patrician.  As 
Emperor,  Henry  always  treated  the  Pope  as  his  dependant 
He  raised  no  fewer  than  four  Germans,  one  after  the  other, 
to  the  Papal  chair.  Had  he  lived,  he  might  have  brought 
the  Papacy  still  further  under  the  Empire,  as  he  would 
certainly  have  added  to  the  power  of  the  Crown  in 
Germany.  But  this  great  Emperor  died  in  1056,  when  still 
a  young  man,  and  in  the  the  fulness  of  his  strength. 

10.  Henry  IV.  Agnes.— At  the  time  of  his  father's 
death  Hen?y  IV.  was  only  six  years  old.  His  mother  Agnes 
became  Regent.  She  was  an  amiable  and  devout  lady,  but 
without  the  strength  necessary  for  her  high  position.  Her 
weak  government  enabled  the  princes  to  win  back  much 
of  the  power  which  the  last  two  kings  had  taken  from  them. 
Agnes  made  matters  worse  by  giving  several  vacant  Duchies 
to  princes  who  were  not  friendly  to  her.  She  thus  prepared 
trouble  for  her  son  when  he  should  be  old  enough  to  rule  in 
his  own  name. 

II.  The  youth  of  Henry  W.—Hanno,  Archbishop  of 
K'oln^  was  one  of  those  who  were  most  unfriendly  to  the 
reigning  family.  In  1062  he  got  possession  of  the  young 
King,  and  forced  Agnes  to  retire  from  the  Regency.  He 
then  proposed  that  Henry  should  live  at  the  courts  of  the 


VIII.] 


HENRY  IV.  AND  THE  SAXONS. 


63 


Dukes,  one  after  the  other,  and  that  the  Bishop  of  the 
Diocese  in  which  he  happened  to  stay  should  be  his 
guardian,  and  act  as  Regent.  In  reality  he  hoped  to  keep  the 
chief  power  of  the  kingdom  in  his  own  hands.  There  was, 
however,  another  powerful  Prelate,  Adalbert,  Archbishop  oj 
Bremen,  who  was  jealous  of  Hanno.  He  had  founded  several 
bishopricks  in  Slavonic  lands,  and  wished  to  become  the 
strongest  spiritual  prince  in  Germany.  He  tried  every 
means  to  take  Henry  from  Hanno,  and  at  last  succeeded, 
Henry  was  very  willing  to  change  his  guardian,  for  Hanno 
was  a  stern  man,  while  Adalbert  was  gay  and  good- 
humoured,  and  lived  in  splendid  style.  Unfortunately, 
Henry  acquired  under  Adalbert's  influence  many  low  tastes, 
and  became  wayward  and  passionate.  Above  all,  he  was 
taught  to  look  on  the  Dukes  of  the  kingdom  as  his  greatest 
enemies,  and  to  dislike  the  Saxons. 

12.  Henry  IV.  and  the  Saxons.— In  1065  Henry  was 
declared  to  have  reached  his  majority.  Pie  fixed  his  court 
at  Goslar,  where  his  father  had  usually  lived,  and  still 
looked  on  Adalbert  as  his  best  friend  and  adviser.  He 
began  his  reign  very  badly,  treating  the  Saxons  with  great 
harshness,  and  acting  as  if  he  intended  to  add  their  Duchy 
to  the  royal  lands.  In  1066  the  princes  compelled  Adalbert 
to  separate  from  him  ;  but  Henry  did  not  change  his  plans. 
He  built  forts  in  different  parts  of  Saxony,  making  one  near 
Goslar,  called  the  Harzburg,  especially  strong.  In  1069 
Adalbert  returned  to  court,  and  encouraged  the  King  in  his 
tyranny,  so  that  the  Saxons  became  more  and  more  discon- 
tented. 

13.  Bertha,  Henry  IV.'s  Queen.— Henry  had  been  be- 
trothed by  his  father  to  Bertha,  daughter  of  the  Margrave 
of  Susa,  and  had  afterwards  been  compelled  to  marry  her. 
He  disliked  her,  and  wished  to  be  divorced.  The  Arch- 
bishop of  Mainz  offered  to  help  him  to  obtain  a  divorce  if 


64 


THE  FRANCONIAN  EMPERORS. 


[chap. 


he  should  compel  the  Thuringians  to  pay  tithes  to  the  See 
of  Mainz.  Henry  promised  to  do  so,  and  thus  made  the 
Thuringians  his  enemies  ;  but  the  Pope  would  not  grant  a 
divorce.  Bertha  bore  bravely  the  rudeness  of  her  husband, 
and  at  last  overcame  him  by  her  goodness,  and  proved  his 
best  helper  during  many  trying  years. 

14.  Otto  of  Nordheim.    War  with  the  Saxons.— Agnes 
had   made    Oito   of  Nordheim^  a  powerful    Saxon  Count, 
Duke  of  Bavaria.     Henry  unjustly  took  his   Duchy  from 
him,   and  gave  it  to    Welf^  son   of   the   Margrave  Azzo 
of  Estt\  who  had  married  a  descendant  of  the  ancient 
Bavarian  house  of  Welf.     Welf  was  a  feeble  prince,  but 
became  the  founder  of  a  powerful  family.      Otto  entered 
into  a  conspiracy  with  Count  Magnus^  son  and  heir  of  the 
Saxon  Duke.    Both  were  overcome  and  imprisoned.     Otto 
was  soon  set  free,  but  Magnus,  even  after  his  father's  death, 
was  kept   in  close  confinement       In    1073  a  number  of 
Saxon  nobles  suddenly  appeared  at  Goslar  and  demanded 
that  their   young    Duke  should   be   given    up    to    them. 
Henry,  not  knowing  how  strong  was   the  feeling  he  had 
roused  against  himself,  treated  them  contemptuously,  and 
dismissed  them.     Almost  immediately  afterwards  an  army 
of  60,000  men  marched   on  Goslar.      Henry    was    taken 
by  surprise,  and  fled  to  Harzburg  ;  but  he  soon  felt  him- 
self unsafe,   and   for   three    days    wandered    through    the 
Harz    mountains,    accompanied    by    only    a    few    f^iithful 
followers.     When  at  last  he  reached  Tribur,  he  summoned 
his  great  vassals  to  his  aid  against  the  rebellious  Saxons. 
It  was  now  that  he  felt  how  ill-advised  his  past  conduct 
had  been.      The  burghers  of  Worms,  against  the  will  of 
their  Bishop,  opened  their  gates  to  him,  and  offered  to  help 
him  ;  but  they,  and  the  citizens  of  some  other  towns,  were 
almost  his  only  friends.      The  Saxons  were  thus  free  to 
do  what  they  pleased  ;  and  they  allowed  their  revenge  to 


VIII.] 


HENRY  IV.  AND  GREGORY  VIE 


65 


carry  them  too  far.  They  not  only  freed  their  Duke,  and 
destroyed  the  fortresses  built  by  Henry  ;  they  plundered  and 
burned  churches,  and  dug  up  and  brutally  insulted  the 
remains  of  a  brother  and  child  of  Hcniy.  This  conduct 
shocked  even  the  King's  enemies,  so  that  he  was  soon  able 
to  gather  a  large  army.  A  battle  was  fought  near  Langen- 
salzii  in  1075.  Many  fell  on  both  sides  ;  but  at  last  the 
Saxons  had  to  fly.  Promises  were  made  to  them  in  Henr/s 
name  which  led  them  to  submit ;  but  Henry  did  not  keep 
his  word.  He  took  the  lands  of  many  nobles,  and  gave 
them  in  flef  to  vassals  of  his  own.  He  also  caused  the 
fortresses  to  be  built  again.  Otto  of  Nordheim,  his  bitterest 
enemy,  was  the  only  noble  whom  he  treated  generously. 
He  not  only  restored  this  prince  to  his  Saxon  lands,  but 
made  him  administrator  of  the  Duchy. 

15.  Henry  IV.  and  Gregory  VII. — Henry  was  now  on 
the  verge  of  a  struggle  far  greater  than  that  which,  as  he 
hoped,  he  had  just  ended.  He  had  treated  with  contempt 
the  famous  decree  of  Pope  Gregory  VII.^  condemning 
feudal  investitures  to  the  clergy.  It  was  quite  natural  that 
he  should  do  so,  for  if  Gregory's  wishes  had  been  carried 
out,  the  spiritual  princes  would  have  owed  allegiance  to 
none  save  the  Pope.  Had  Henry  been  a  popular  King, 
Gregory  would  probably  not  have  dared  to  do  anything 
against  him.  But  Germany  was  deeply  discontented. 
Saxony,  although  for  the  moment  subdued,  was  eager  to 
rebel  ;  and  Rudolf  of  Sivabia^  Otto  of  NordJieiin^  and  a 
host  of  other  enemies  wished  for  nothing  more  than  to 
see  Henry  humbled.  Gregory  resolved  to  take  advantage 
of  this  state  of  things  for  his  own  ends.  By  overcoming 
Henry,  he  would  not  only  settle  the  question  of  investitures  ; 
he  would  establish  beyond  dispute  the  principle  on  which 
he  so  earnestly  insisted,  that  the  Pope,  as  the  viceroy  of  God, 
was  above  all  earthly  rulers — the  Emperor,  and  the  King  who 


'_.^-« 


66 


THE  FRANCONIAN  EMPERORS. 


[chap. 


claimed  the  right  to  be  crowned  Emperor,  not  less  than 
other  sovereij^ns.  In  1075,  therefore,  Gregory  summoned 
Henry  to  appear  before  him  at  Rome  to  answer  to  charges 
brought  against  him  by  the  Saxons  and  others.  Henry 
looked  on  this  as  priestly  arrogance,  and,  at  a  Synod 
of  German  Bishops  held  at  Worms  earlv  in  the  following 
year,  caused  Gregory  to  be  deposed.  The  Pope  replied  not 
only  by  excommunicating  Henry,  but  by  declaring  him  no 
longer  King,  and  by  absolving  his  subjects  from  their  oath 
of  allegiance  to  him.  Henry  was  not  prepared  for  the  result. 
Some  remained  true  to  him  ,  but  his  enemies  openly  accepted 
the  Papal  sentence,  and  such  was  the  power  of  the  Church 
that  large  numbers  whom  mere  secular  disputes  might  not 
have  separated  from  him  now  either  wavered  in  their 
loyalty  or  left  him  altogether.  The  whole  German  nation 
was  at  once  divided  into  two  hostile  parties.  The  struggle 
which  thus  arose  was  to  prove  the  bitterest  and  most  pro- 
longed of  the  Middle  Ages,  for  it  was  to  be  a  struggle  of  the 
two  greatest  powers  on  earth,  the  Papacy  and  the  Empire 
for  supremacy.  The  details  of  the  struggle  belong  only  in 
part  to  German  histor>'. 

16.  Henry  IV.  humbled  by  Gregory  VII.— The  first 
step  of  the  princes  opposed  to  Henry  was  to  summon  an 
Assembly  for  the  purpose  of  electing  a  new  King.  The 
Assembly  met  at  Tribur.  Henry  now  saw  the  danger  of 
his  position,  and  tried  hard  to  influence  the  Assembly  in  his 
favour.  The  princes  at  last  agreed  that  the  affairs  of  the 
kingdom  should  be  laid  before  the  Pope  at  Augsburg  during 
the  next  festival  of  the  Purification.  If  at  the  end  of  a  year 
Henry  remained  excommunicate  he  was  no  longer  to  be 
looked  on  as  King.  The  princes  did  not  really  wish  Henry 
to  be  reconciled  to  the  Pope  ;  but  he  himself  felt  that  this 
was  the  only  way  in  which  he  could  now  save  his  throne. 
He   accordingly   resolved   to  go   and   see   Gregorv      The 


VIII.]      HENRY  IV.  AND  RUDOLF  OF  SWABIA.        67 


winter  of  1076-7  was  an  unusually  severe  one  ;  but  Henry, 
accompanied  by  his  faithful  wife  Bertha  and  their  infant 
son,  started  secretly  for  Italy.  In  crossing  the  Alps  they 
met  with  great  difficulties  ;  but  at  length,  aided  by  hired 
guides,  they  safely  reached  Lombardy.  Although  Henry 
was  warmly  received  by  many  Lombard  nobles  and  prelates, 
he  hastened  to  the  castle  of  Canossa^  whither  Gregory  had 
gone  on  hearing  of  his  arrival.  Henry  had  to  stand  three 
days,  bare-headed  and  meanly  clad,  in  the  inner  court  of 
the  castle,  exposed  to  the  bitter  cold,  waiting  till  Gregory 
should  consent  to  see  him.  When  at  last  he  was  admitted, 
the  sentence  of  excommunication  was  removed  ;  but  he  had 
to  promise  that  Gregory  should  be  allowed  to  settle  the 
difficulties  of  the  German  kingdom,  and  that  meanwhile  he 
himself  should  not  take  again  his  position  as  King. 

I*/.  Henry  IV.  and  Rudolf  of  Swabia.  Frederick  of 
Biiren.— The  discontented  German  nobles  met  at  Forchheim 
in  March,  1077,  formally  proclaimed  their  right  to  choose 
a  new  sovereign,  and  elected  Rudolf,  Duke  of  Swabia,  as 
King.  Henry  hastened  home,  and  was  joined  by  a  large 
party,  the  cities  proving  especially  loyal  friends.  Rudolf 
was  driven  from  Swabia,  and  took  refuge  among  the  Saxons, 
who,  headed  by  Otto  of  Nordheim,  bravely  supported  him. 
For  a  time  Pope  Gregory  decidedly  took  part  with  neither 
side,  but  at  length,  in  1080,  he  recognized  Rudolf,  and  once 
more  excommunicated  Henry.  Henry  replied  as  before, 
by  summoning  a  council  of  German  prelates,  who  deposed 
Gregory,  and  recognized  the  Archbishop  of  Ravenna,  under 
tJie  name  of  Clement  III,  as  Pope.  In  the  same  year 
Henry  lost  a  battle  near  Zeitz  ;  but  the  victor)-  of  the  enemy 
was  only  in  name,  for  Rudolf  himself  was  killed.  The 
Duchy  of  Swabia  had  some  time  before  been  given  to 
Frederick  of  Biiren,  a  nobleman  who  had  built  his  castle  on 
the  hill  of  Stau/en,  in  what  is  now  the  kingdom  of  Wiirtem- 


68 


THE  FRANCONIAN  EMPERORS, 


[chap. 


VIII.] 


HENRY  V, 


69 


berg,  Frederick  at  the  same  time  married  Henry's  daughter, 
Agnes.  He  was  thus  the  founder  of  the  great  Hohenstaufen 
family,  under  whose  rule  Germany  and  the  Empire  were  to 
rise  to  their  highest  fame  and  splendour. 

18.  Submission  of  the  Saxons.— After  Rudolfs  death 
Henry's  cause  quickly  gained  ground.  In  108 1  he  felt  him- 
self strong  enough  to  leave  the  conduct  of  the  war  in 
Germany  in  the  hands  of  Frederick  of  Swabia,  whilst  he 
himself  went  to  Italy.  He  was  crowned  Emperor  at  Rome 
by  Clement  III.,  and  in  1085  returned  to  Germany,  having 
amply  revenged  the  humiliation  of  Canossa.  Meanwhile, 
the  Saxons  had  recognized  Hermann  oi  Luxemburg  2i%  their 
King,  but  in  1087  he  resigned  the  crown  ;  and  another 
claimant,  Eckbert,  Margrave  of  Meissen^  was  murdered. 
The  Saxons  were  now  thoroughly  weary  of  strife,  and  as 
years  and  bitter  experience  had  softened  the  character  of 
Henry,  they  were  the  more  willing  to  return  to  their 
allegiance.  Peace  was  therefore,  for  a  time,  restored  in 
Germany. 

19.  Rebellion  of  Henry  IV. 's  Sons.  His  death.— The 
Papacy  did  not  -forgive  Henry.  He  was  excommuni- 
cated several  times,  and  in  1091  his  son  Conrad  \\2iS  excited 
to  rebel  against  him.  In  1 104  a  more  serious  rebellion  was 
headed  by  the  Emperors  second  son  Henry,  who  had  been 
crowned  King,  on  promising  not  to  seize  the  government 
during  his  father's  lifetime,  in  1099.  The  Emperor  was 
treated  very  cruelly,  and  had  to  sign  his  own  abdication  at 
Ino^elheim  in  1105.  A  last  effort  was  made  on  his  behalf 
by  the  Duke  of  Lotharingia  ;  but,  worn  out  by  his  sorrows 
and  struggles,  Henry  died  in  August,  1106.  His  body  lay 
in  a  stone  coffin  in  an  unconsecrated  chapel  at  Speyer  for 
live  years.  Not  till  11 11,  when  the  sentence  of  excom* 
munication  was  removed,  was  it  properly  buried. 

20.  Henry  V.     The  Concordat  of  Worms.— Henry  V. 


^ 


was  not  so  obedient  to  the  Church  as  the  Papal  party 
had  hoped.  He  stoutly  maintained  the  very  point  which 
had  brought  so  much  trouble  on  his  father.  The  right  of 
investiture,  he  declared,  had  always  belonged  to  his  prede- 
cessors, and  he  was  not  to  give  up  what  they  had  handed 
on  to  him.  In  mo  he  went  to  Rome,  accompanied  by 
a  large  army.  Next  year  Pope  Paschal  II.  was  forced  to 
crown  him  Emperor ;  but  as  soon  as  the  Germans  had 
crossed  the  Alps  again  Paschal  renewed  all  his  old 
demands.  The  struggle  soon  spread  to  Germany.  The 
Emperor  was  excommunicated;  and  the  discontented 
princes,  as  eager  as  ever  to  break  the  royal  power,  sided 
with  the  Pope  against  him.  Peace  was  not  restored  till 
1 122,  when  Calixtus  II.  was  Pope.  In  that  year,  in  a  Diet 
held  at  Worms,  both  parties  agreed  to  a  compromise, 
called  the  Concordat  of  Worms.  The  advantage  decidedly 
rested  with  the  Papacy.  The  Prelates  were  still  to  do 
homage  for  their  lands  ;  but  the  Emperor  renounced  the 
investiture  with  ring  and  staff,  and  agreed  that  Bishops 
and  Abbots  should  henceforth  be  elected  by  the  clergy. 
The  Church  was  thus  made  to  a  large  extent  independent 
of  the  crown.  During  the  remaining  three  years  of  his 
life  Henry  was  at  peace  with  the  Church ;  but  he  had  to 
fight  constantly  with  rebellious  nobles.  Frederick  of 
Swabia  had  been  succeeded  by  his  son  Frederick;  and  a 
second  son,  Conrad,  had  been  made  Duke  of  Franconia. 
The  Emperor  had  given  his  sister  Agnes,  the  first 
Frederick's  wife,  in  marriage  to  Leopold,  Margrave  of 
Austria.  He  had  thus  secured  powerful  friends  in  the 
south  of  Germany  ;  but  in  the  north  he  never  thoroughly 
established  his  authority.  He  died  at  Utrecht  in  1125. 
He  had  no  children,  and  was  therefore  the  last  of  the 
Franconian  dynasty. 
21.  Lothar  of  Saxony. — The  nobles  once  more  assemb  ed 


I! 


70 


THE  FRANCONIAN  EMPERORS, 


[chap. 


with  their  vassals  near  Mainz,  to  elect  a  new  King.  Ten 
princes  from  each  of  the  four  leading  Duchies,  Franconia, 
Saxony,  Swabia,  and  Bavaria,  met  in  Mainz,  and  chose 
Lothar,  Duke  of  Saxony.  Lothar  was  opposed  by  the 
Hohenstaufen  princes,  Frederick  and  Conrad.  In  order 
to  put  them  down  he  submitted  as  no  Gennan  King 
had  before  done  to  the  Papal  See.  Pope  Innocent  II. 
even  claimed  that  Lothar,  when  being  crowned  Emperor, 
in  1 1 33,  became  the  Pope's  man.  Lothar's  faithful  ally 
in  this  war  with  the  Hohenstaufen  was  Henry  the  Proud, 
Duke  of  Bavaria,  of  the  house  of  Welf.  This  Duke 
married  the  Emperors  daughter,  held  the  Italian  lands  of 
the  Countess  Mathilda,  and  also  became  Duke  of  Saxony. 
He  was  therefore  as  powerful  as  Lothar  himself.  In  11 34 
Frederick  of  Swabia  yielded  to  Lothar  ;  and  his  example 
was  soon  followed  by  his  brother  Conrad.  Three  years 
afterwards  Lothar  died  in  a  peasant's  hut  in  the  Tyrol  on 
his  way  back  from  Italy. 

22.  Loss  of  pow^er  by  the  German  Kings. — The  Ger- 
man Kings  were  now  far  from  being  what  they  had  been  in 
the  time  of  the  Ottos  and  of  Henry  III.  The  princes  were 
of  course  still  the  men  of  the  King,  but  they  had  taken 
every  opportunity  to  seize  royal  rights,  and  they  had  many 
opportunities  during  the  wars  of  Henry  IV.  and  his  suc- 
cessors. A  new  and  strong  dynasty  was  about  to  arise  ; 
but  in  the  end  the  far-reaching  ambition  of  the  Hohenstaufen 
family  was  itself  one  of  the  means  by  which  the  great  feudal 
lords  became  practically  independent  of  the  crown  and  of 
all  other  earthly  power. 

23.  The  Lower  nobility. — When  all  fiefs  became 
hereditary,  the  vassals  of  the  great  nobles  rose  very  much 
in  importance.  They  sometimes  even  refused  to  follow 
their  lord  into  the  field,  as  the  vassals  of  Duke  Ernst  did 
when  he  wished  to  lead  them  against  Conrad  II.     This 


VIII.] 


PRIVATE  WARFARE, 


71 


class  also  came  to  be  looked  on  as  noble  ;  but  no  one  could 
inherit  land  held  immediately  of  the  crown  unless  both  his 
parents  belonged  to  the  higher  aristocracy. 

24.  Private  Warfare. — We  have  seen  that  Henry  III.  pro- 
claimed a  General  Peace.  In  the  disturbed  time  which 
followed  his  death  this  was  soon  set  aside.  The  nobles  might 
lay  their  disputes  before  the  Diet  or  a  special  court  of  their 
peers  ;  but  they  more  usually  appealed  to  arms.  All  that  can 
be  said  for  them  is  that  when  there  was  no  strong  Government 
the  weaker  side  in  any  quarrel  could  seldom  obtain  full  justice. 
The  Church  continued  to  fight  against  a  custom  which  did 
so  much  hai-m,  especially  to  the  common  folk.  In  the 
eleventh  century  some  Bishops  in  Burgundy  proclaimed 
what  was  called  The  T7'uce  of  God,  an  ecclesiastical  law 
which  required  all  private  warfare  to  stop  every  week  from 
sunset  qn  Wednesday  till  sunrise  on  Monday.  This  law 
was  gradually  brought  into  Germany,  and,  although  it 
was  not  always  observed,  it  did  at  least  something  to 
lessen  the  evils  of  private  war.  Afterwards  the  spiritual 
and  secular  princes  of  certain  districts  sometimes  united 
and  bound  themselves  by  oath  to  keep  the  peace  for  some 
stated  time.  This  also  did  something  to  prepare  the  way 
for  the  time  when  private  warfare  should  altogether  cease. 

25.  Robbery.— Private  warfare  was  not  the  only  public 
evil  from  which  Germany  suffered  ;  for  many  centuries 
robbery  was  also  common  all  over  the  kingdom.  The  petty 
nobles  often  almost  lived  by  robbery.  It  was  always  one  of 
the  chief  aims  of  good  Kings  to  punish  robbers ;  and  princes 
who  cared  for  the  prosperity  of  their  vassals  and  subject 
tow  ns  also  tried  to  put  down  the  evil  within  their  lands. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  HOHENSTAUFEN  EMPERORS. 

Conrad  of  Franc onia  elected  King;  he  takes  Saxony  and  Bavaria 
from  Henry  the  Proud  {\)—'war  betiveen  Conrad  and  Ilenryj 
Saxony  given  to  Henr/s  son  ;  Albert  the  Bear  {2)— Count  IVclJ 
continues  the  war;  his  defeat  {l)— the  Welfs  and  IFaidlings  U) 
—Conrad  III.  Joins  the  Second  Crusade;  his  return  and 
death  {<,)— election  of  Frederick  I,;  he  gives  Bavaria  to  Henry 
the  Lion,  and  makes  Austria  a  Duchy  {6)— wars  of  Frederick  I. 
in  Italy  {'j)—Fredenck  /.  and  his  subject  States;  crowned  King 
of  Burgundy  {%)— wise  goverfiment  of  Frederick  I.  {cj)— Frederick 

I.  takes  Bavaria  and  Saxony  from  Henry  the  Lion  {\o)— Henry 
the  Lion  submits  {11)— Frederick  L  Joins  the  Third  Crusade; 
his  death  {12)— the  King  of  the  Romans  {iZ)— Henry  VI.  makes 
peace  with  Henry  the  Lion  {14)— Henry  VL  and  the  kingdom 
of  Sicily  {is)— Henry  VI.  and  Richard  L  of  England  {16)— 
Henry  VI,  tries  to  make  the  croavn  hereditary;  his  death  (17)— 
Kings  Philip  and  Otto  {i%)—Otto  excommunicated;  Frederick 

II.  made  King  {i())— character  of  Frederick  II.  {20)— absence 
of  Frederick  IL  from  Germany  {21)— rebellion  of  Frederick  II.' s 
son  Henry  {22)— Frederick  II.  marries  Isabella,  sister  of  Henry 
III  ;  holds  a  Diet  at  Mainz  (23)— M<f  Moguls  driven  back 
from  Silesia  {24)— Frederick  IL  aiui  Pope  Innocent  IV.  (25)— 
election  of  rival  Kings;  death  of  Frederick  IL  and  Conrad 
IV.  {26)— conquest  of  Slavonic  lands  {2^)— further  loss  of  power 
by  the  German  Kings  {2%)-the  Seven  Electors  {2C))-the  German 
Kings  and  the  Pope  {t,o)— increase  of  immediate  nobles  (32)— 
leading  noble  houses  (32)— /awj  of  inheritance  {ii)r-instituticn 


[CH.  IX.] 


CONRAD  IIL 


73 


of  knighthood  (34) — the  towns  (35) — leagues  of  towns ;  the 
Hansa  (36) — the  freeing  of  serfs  {37) — the  **  SachsenspiegeP* 
and  **  Schwa  ben  Spiegel"  (38) — the  Femgerichte  (39) — Archi- 
tecture and  LitercUure  (40). 


1.  Conrad  III.  takes  Saxony  and  Bavaria  from  Henry 
the  Proud. — Henry  the  Proud  hoped  to  be  made  Lothar's 
successor  ;  but  he  was  disappointed.  In  11 38,  the  princes 
friendly  to  the  Hohenstaufen  met  at  Coblentz  and  elected 
Conrad  of  Franconia  as  King.  Conrad,  wishing  to  lessen 
the  power  of  Heniy  the  Proud,  ordered  him  to  give  up 
Saxony,  on  the  ground  that  it  was  unlawful  for  one  prince 
to  hold  two  Duchies.  When  Henry  refused,  both  his 
Duchies  were  taken  from  him.  Conrad  gave  Bavaria  to 
Leopold,  Margrave  of  Austria,  and  Saxony  to  Albert  the 
Bear,  who  had  received  from  King  Lothar  the  Northern 
Mark  of  Saxony. 

2.  Saxony  given  back  to  Henrys  Son.  Albert  the 
Bear. — War  now  broke  out  between  Conrad  and  Henry  the 
Proud.  As  usual,  the  cities  were  the  best  friends  of  the 
King.  They  were  all  the  more  friendly  to  him  because 
the  opposite  party  looked  to  the  Pope  for  help,  and  the 
cities  knew  from  experience  how  much  harm  might  come  of 
Papal  interference.  Henry  the  Proud  soon  died,  and  left  a 
young  son,  afterwards  known  as  Henry  the  Lion.  Conrad, 
wishing  to  bring  back  peace,  made  Albert  the  Bear  give  up 
the  Duchy  of  Saxony  to  Henry,  and  rewarded  him  by 
separating  his  Mark  from  Saxony,  and  making  it  im- 
mediate. After  this  Albert  steadily  pushed  his  conquests 
among  the  Wends,  and  seized  the  town  of  Brandenburg; 
which  gave  its  name  to  his  Mark.  In  his  time  we  first 
hear  of  Berlin. 

3.  Count  Welf.  The  women  of  Weinsberg. — Count 
We  Iff   Henry  the   Proud's  brother,  continued  the  war  in 


74 


THE  HOHENSTA  UFEN  EMPERORS.        [chap. 


Bavaria  ;  but  in  1140  he  was  defeated.  He  took  refuge  in 
Weinsbef'gy  which  had  long  been  besieged  in  vain,  but  now 
yielded.  There  is  a  story  that  Conrad  agreqd  that  the 
women  of  Weinsberg  might  leave  the  town  before  he  should 
destroy  it,  and  take  with  them  whatever  they  chose  to 
carry  ;  and  that  next  morning,  when  the  gates  were  opened, 
a  long  line  of  women  stumbled  out,  each  carrying  her 
husband  or  lover  on  her  back.  Conrad,  the  story  says,  was 
so  touched  by  this  that  he  not  only  let  the  women  and  the 
men  they  took  with  them  escape,  but  spared  the  whole  city. 

4.  The  Welfs  and  Waiblings.— It  was  during  the  siege 
of  Weinsberg  that  the  followers  of  Conrad  adopted  as  their 
war-cry  Waiblmgen^  the  name  of  a  village  where  Frederick^ 
Duke  of  Swabia,  Conrad's  brother,  had  been  brought  up. 
The  rebels  shouted  Welf^  the  name  of  their  leader. 
These  war-cries,  which  the  Italians  corrupted  into  Gtielr 
and  GJiibelin  became  the  names  of  the  two  great  parties 
which  divided  the  Empire.  The  IVclfs  sided  with  the 
Popes  against  the  Emperors ;  the  Waiblings  supported 
the  Emperors  against  the  Popes. 

5.  The  Second  Crusade.  Death  of  Conrad  III.— Ger- 
many had  been  too  much  taken  up  with  her  own  aftairs  in 
the  time  of  Henry  IV.  to  take  any  great  part  in  the  First 
Crusade.  But  in  1147  Conrad  joined  the  Second  Crusade 
v/ith  an  army  of  70,000  men.  He  was  accompanied  by 
his  nephew  Frederick  of  Swabia,  his  old  enemy  Welf,  and 
many  other  princes.  Conrad  shewed  great  bravery  during 
this  Crusade  ;  but  he  gained  nothing,  and  came  home  in 
two  years,  his  health  broken  by  anxiety  and  suffering.  Before 
his  death  he  had  again  to  put  down  a  rebellion  headed  by 
Count  Welf.  As  he  was  preparing  to  go  to  Italy  to  be  crowned 
Emperor,  he  died  at  Bajnbergm  11 52. 

6.  Frederick    I.      Henry    the    Lion    receives    Bavaria. 
/Austria  made  a   Duchy. — Conrad  had  recommended  that 


IX.] 


FREDERICK  BARBAROSSA 


75 


his  nephew,  Frederick,  should  be  made  his  successor  ;  and 
his  advice  was  followed.  The  new  King,  afterwards  called, 
from  his  red  beard,  Frederick  Barbarossa,  was  thirty-one 
years  old  at  the  time  of  his  coronation.  He  was  a  man  of 
free  and  noble  nature,  but  had  a  strong  will,  and  could  be 
stern  and  harsh  in  asserting  what  he  looked  on  as  his 
rights.  He  was  the  son  of  Henry  the  Proud's  sister,  and 
his  cousin  Henry  the  Lion  was  his  personal  friend,  so  thai 
he  was  anxious  to  heal  the  differences  between  the  Welfs 
and  the  Waiblings.  With  a  view  to  this  he  gave  Henry 
the  Lion,  who  already  held  the  Duchy  of  Saxony,  the  Duchy 
of  Bavaria,  and  thus  made  him  by  far  the  most  powerful 
prince  in  Germany.  To  make  up  to  Heniy,  Margrave  of 
Austria,  for  yielding  Bavaria,  Frederick  took  Austria  from 
Bavaria,  and  made  it  a  separate  Duchy.  The  new  Duchy 
was  made  hereditary  in  the  female  as  well  as  in  the  male  line. 

7.  Frederick  I.  and  Italy.— Frederick  went  to  Italy  in  1 1 54, 
and  was  crowned  King  of  Italy  and  Roman  Emperor  in  the 
following  year.  This  was  the  first  of  a  series  of  expeditions 
made  by  Frederick  to  Italy,  during  which  he  carried  on  his 
famous  struggle  with  the  Papacy  and  the  Lombard  cities. 
This  contest  took  up  the  best  part  of  his  life,  so  that,  although 
he  was  a  great  German  King,  the  leading  events  of  his  reign 
belong  to  Italian  rather  than  to  German  history. 

8.  Subject  States.  Burgundy.— In  the  first  year  of  his 
reign  Frederick  had  made  the  King  of  Denmark  do  homage 
for  his  crown.  The  King  of  Poland,  and  King  Geisa  of 
Hungary,  also  became  Frederick's  men.  Wladislaw,  Duke 
of  Bohemia,  was  so  faithful  a  vassal  that  Frederick  raised 
his  Duchy  to  the  rank  of  a  kingdom.  Frederick  married 
Beatrice,  heiress  of  the  Free  County  of  Burgundy,  and  thus 
brought  this  part  of  the  Burgundian  kingdom  to  his  own 
family.  He  was  afterwards  crowned  King  of  Burgundy  at 
Aries. 


76 


THE  HOHENSTA  UFEN  EMPERORS,         [chap. 


IX.] 


HENRY  THE  LION, 


77 


,0 


9.  Home  government  of  Frederick  I.— Frederick  was 
as  strong  at  home  as  abroad.  Even  he  could  not  put  down 
private  wars  ;  but  he  decreed  that  those  about  to  begin  such 
a  war  should  give  the  enemy  three  day's  notice.  Those 
who  did  not  do  this  were  to  be  treated  as  robbers.  Frederick 
also  encouraged  the  cities,  making  some  free,  and  giving 
others  important  privileges.  The  fame  of  his  wars,  and 
his  good  government,  made  him  one  of  the  most  popular 
of  German  Kings.  The  struggle  between  the  Empire 
and  the  Papacy  had  always  hitherto  stirred  up  strife  in 
Germany  ;  and  this  was  still  more  the  case  in  the  time  of 
Frederick's  successors.  The  Popes,  however,  found  that, 
out  of  Italy,  they  had  no  means  of  harming  Frederick.  All 
parties  in  Germany  rallied  round  him.  When  a  Papal 
legate  declared  in  the  Diet  that  the  Empire  was  dependant 
on  the  Papacy,  Frederick  himself  had  to  interfere  to 
save  the  legate's  life.  Even  the  Prelates  remained  true 
to  Frederick.  Had  they  always  been  as  loyal,  the  history 
of  Germany  might  have  been  very  different. 

10.  Bavaria  and  Saxony  taken  from  Henry  the  Lion.— 
Henry  the  Lion  became  more  and  more  powerful.  He 
founded  new  towns— among  others,  Munich— ^xi^  helped 
those  which  already  existed,  such  as  Hamburg  and 
Liibeck,  to  become  rich  and  strong.  He  also  took  many 
lands  from  the  Wends  along  the  shores  of  the  Baltic.  His 
greatness  roused  the  jealousy  of  the  other  princes,  whom  he 
often  offended  by  his  arrogant  manner.  Frederick  would 
probably  not  have  interfered  with  him  if  he  had  remained  a 
tme  vassal ;  but  in  1 175,  when  the  Emperor  was  in  the  very 
heat  of  his  struggle  with  Lombardy,  Henry,  on  whom  he 
had  refused  to  bestow  the  city  of  Goslar,  suddenly  left 
him,  and  went  home  with  his  followers.  Frederick,  who 
is  said  to  have  gone  on  his  knees  and  besought  the  Duke 
to  stay,  could  not  forgive  this,  and  in  1 178,  when  he  returned 


to  Germany,  two  years  after  the  battle  of  Legnano,  sum- 
moned Henry  to  appear  before  the  Diet  at  Worms.  Henry 
refused  to  come.  In  11 80,  therefore,  Frederick  put  him 
to  the  ban  of  the  Empire,  and,  with  the  sanction  of  the 
Diet,  pronounced  him  to  have  forfeited  all  his  lands, 
jome  lands  in  the  cast  of  Saxony  were  given  as  a  Duchy 
to  Bernard  of  Anhalt,  son  of  Albert  the  Bear.  Philip, 
Archbishop  of  Kiihi^  received  part  of  the  west  of  Saxony, 
and  ducal  rights  in  the  lands  granted  to  him.  The  Duchy 
of  Bavaria  was  given  to  Otto  of  Wittehbach,  a  valued 
friend  of  Frederick  ;  but  it  was  greatiy  weakened  by  the 
separation  of  Styria. 

11.  Submission  of  Henry  the  Lion.— Henry  did  not 
quietly  allow  his  lands  to  be  taken  from  him.  He  fought 
bravely  in  their  defence;  but  in  1181,  feeling  that  his 
cause  was  hopeless,  he  came  to  Frederick  at  the  Diet  in 
Erfurt,  and  humbly  craved  forgiveness.  Frederick  was 
touched  by  the  humiliation  of  his  old  friend.  He  could  not 
give  Henry  back  his  Duchies  ;  but  he  allowed  him  to  ke^  ^ 
Brunswick  and  Liincburg.  Heniy  undertook  to  \\\y  iox 
three  years  at  the  court  of  Henry  II.,  King  of  Erlgland, 
whose  daughter  he  had  married.  During  his  stay  in 
England,  a  son,  William,  was  born  to  him,  from  whom  the 
present  royal  family  of  England  is  descended. 

12.  The  Third  Crusade.  Death  of  Frederick  L— In 
1 1 89,  when  Frederick  was  an  old  man,  he  set  out  on  a 
Third  Crusade  at  the  head  of  a  large  army  ;  but  he  did  not 
again  see  the  Holy  Land.  As  his  army  was  crossing  the 
nver  Calicadnus,  in  Cilicia,  in  June,  1190,  he  became  im- 
patient at  the  delay  caused  by  the  blocking  up  of  a  bridge, 
and  dashed  into  the  river  on  horseback.  The  stream  carried 
him  away,  and  before  help  could  reach  him  he  was  drowned. 
He  was  buried  in  Antioch;  but  a  tradition  afterwards  arose 
that  he  slept  with  his  knights  in  a  cavern  of  the  Kyffhdusef 

/  • 


78 


THE  HOHENSTA  UFEN  EMPERORS,        [chap. 


Berg^  in  Thnringia,  and  that,  when  the  ravens  should  cease 
to  fly  around  the  mountain,  he  would  awake  and  restore  to 
Germany  its  ancient  greatness. 

13.  The  King  of  the  Romans.— Frederick  had  his 
eldest  son,  Henry^  chosen  as  his  successor.  In  this  he 
followed  the  example  of  several  other  Emperors ;  but 
Henry  was  the  first  to  take,  during  the  life-time  of  the 
Emperor,  the  title  of  "  King  of  the  Romans."  After  him 
any  one  elected  and  crowned  during  an  Emperor's  life-time 
always  took  this  title.  In  the  end  ahnost  every  Emperor 
tried  to  have  his  successor  chosen  while  he  himself  still 
lived.  The  King  of  the  Romans  exercised  no  inde- 
pendent authority  while  the  Emperor  was  alive  ;  but  when 
the  Emperor  died  a  fresh  election  and  coronation  were  not 
necessary. 

14.  Henry  VI.— Henry  VI.  had  much  of  his  fathers's 
strength  of  character,  but  he  was  harsh  and  cruel.     At  the 

.time  of  Frederick's  death  he  was  fighting  Henry  the  Lion, 
who  had  come  back  from  England,  and  begun  the  old 
contest.  King  Henry  at  once  made  peace,  and  hurried  to 
Italy  to  receive  the  Imperial  crown.  Henry  the  Lion's 
son  afterwards  married  a  niece  of  Frederick  Barbarossa,  so 
that  there  was  peace  for  some  time  between  the  two  houses. 

15.  The  Kingdom  of  Sicily.— A  few  years  before  his 
father's  death  Henry  VI.  had  married  Constance,  heiress  to 
the  Kingdom  of  Sicily.  One  of  the  chief  objects  of  his  life, 
after  he  became  Emperor,  was  to  make  himself  thoroughly 
master  of  this  kingdom.  In  trying  to  gain  this  end  he  was 
a  great  deal  out  of  Germany,  and  sacrificed  much  blood  and 
treasure. 

16.  Henry  VI.  and  Richard  I.  of  England.— In  1193 
Richard  I.  of  England  was  given  up  to  Henry  by  Leopold, 
Duke  of  Austria,  who  had  seized  the  English  King  as  he 
was  passing  through  Austria  on  his  way  homewards    Henry 


X 


IX.] 


FREDERICK  II. 


79 


made  Richard  appear  before  the  Diet,  and  refused  to  set 
him  free  until  the  English  people  had  paid  a  great  ransom. 

17.  Henry  VI.  tries  to  make  the  crown  hereditary. 
His  death.— Henry  was  very  anxious  that  the  German 
crown  should  cease  to  be  elective,  and  offered  the  princes 
many  privileges  if  they  would  make  it  hereditary  in  his 
family.  Some  princes  would  have  agreed  to  this  proposal ' 
but  the  Saxons,  many  of  the  clergy,  and  afterwards  the 
Pope  objected,  so  that  the  scheme  had  to  be  given  up. 
In  1 197,  Henry  suddenly  died  in  Sicily,  in  his  thirty-second 

year. 

18.    Kings   Philip  and   Otto.— Henry  VI.'s  young  son, 
Frederick,  had  already  been  elected  King  of  the  Romans, 
but  his  claims  were  now  set  aside.     The    Waiblings,   or 
Hohenstaufen  party,  chose  Philip,  Henry  VI.'s  brother,  as 
King  ;  the  Wclfs  elected  Otto,  the  second  son  of  Henry  the 
Lion.     These  rival  Kings  carried  on  war  with  each  other  for 
ten  years,  during  which  the  country  was  in  great  confusion. 
Had  they  been  left  to  themselves,  Philip  would  probably 
have  gained  an  easy  victory  ;  but  Otto  was  favoured  by 
Pope  Innocent  III.,  and  this  greatly  strengthened  him.     At 
last,  in  1208,  Philip  was  murdered  by  a  private  enemy  ;  and 
Otto  was  generally  recognized  as  King. 

19.  Frederick  II.— Otto  was  crowned  Emperor  in  1209. 
But  Pope  Innocent  was  offended  by  his  showing  some  signs 
of  independence,  and  soon  turned  against  him.  Frederick, 
Henry  VI.'s  son,  to  whom,  since  the  death  of  his  mother. 
Innocent  had  acted  as  guardian,  had  now  grown  up  in  Sicily 
to  be  a  youth  of  high  promise.  Innocent  excommunicated 
Otto,  and  called  upon  the  German  princes  to  elect  Frederick 
as  his  successor.  Otto  set  out  for  Southern  Italy  to  attack 
his  new  rival  ;  but  as  he  learned  on  the  way  that  the 
German  princes  had  obeyed  the  Pope's  command,  he  turned 
and  hastened  to  Germany.     Frederick  also  went  to  Ger- 


8o 


THE  H OH  ENS  TA  UFEN  EMPERORS,        [ciiAP. 


many,  and  was  received  with  enthusiasm  by  the  friends  of 
his  house.  After  this  Otto  gradually  lost  ground,  and  in  the 
end  he  retired  into  private  life.  In  121 5  Frederick,  sup- 
ported by  the  Pope,  and  by  the  great  body  of  the  Gennan 
princes,  was  crowned  King  at  Aachen. 

20.  Character  of  Frederick  II. — Frederick  II.  was  per- 
sonally one  of  the  greatest  of  the  Emperors.  He  was  so 
highly  gifted  that  men  called  him  The  Wonder  of  the  World, 
He  knew  many  languages,  was  a  man  of  science  and  a  poet, 
and  had  ideas  of  govefnmcnt  far  beyond  those  of  his  own 
day.  Ifhe  had  lived  in  happier  times  he  would  have  pro- 
foundly influenced  the  course  of  history.  As  it  was,  he  did 
very  little  of  lasting  importance.  His  great  powers  were 
wasted  in  a  long  stniggle  with  the  Lombard  cities  and  with 
the  Papacy,  which,  although  at  first  friendly  to  him,  soon 
saw  in  him  its  most  deadly  enemy. 

21.  Absence  of  Frederick  II.  from  Germany. — In  1220 
Frederick  went  to  Rome  to  be  crowned  Emperor,  and  he 
did  not  return  for  fifteen  years.  During  that  time  he  had 
very  little  directly  to  do  with  Germany  ;  his  struggle  with 
the  Lombard  cities,  and  with  Pope  Gregory  IX..,  his  crusade 
for  the  deliverance  of  Jerusalem,  and  the  many  pleasures 
of  his  brilliant  court,  took  up  almost  all  his  thoughts.  Before 
he  left  Germany  he  persuaded  the  princes  to  elect  his  young 
son  IJcnry  King  of  the  Romans.  This  child,  under  Engelberty 
Archbishop  of  Koln,  was  left  as  Regent  in  Germany.  The 
nobles,  who,  during  the  stiiiggle  between  Otto  and  Philip, 
had  greately  added  to  their  power,  took  advantage  of 
Frederick's  long  absence  to  establish  their  independence 
more  fully.  Private  wars  went  on  all  over  the  country  ;  and 
robberies  became  once  more  common. 

22.  Frederick  IPs  son  Henry  rebels. — Frederick's  son 
Henry  did  not  inherit  his  fathei-'s  fine  qualities.  He  was 
mean,  rash,  and  violent.     He  resolved  to  seize  the  German 


IX.] 


DIET  AT  MAINZ. 


81 


throne,  and  openly  declared  his  intention,  in  1234,  to  the 
assembled  princes  at  Boppart.  Next  year  the  Emperor 
came  to  Germany.  Henry  tried  to  poison  him,  but  was 
found  out,  and  sent  as  a  prisoner  to  Apulia. 

23.  Marriage  of  Frederick  II.  Diet  at  Mainz. — During 
this  visit  to  Germany,  Frederick  married  Isabella^  sister  of 
Henry  III.  of  England.  There  had  never  been  such  festivities 
in  Germany  as  those  which  took  place  in  Koln,  where  Fred- 
erick met  the  bride,  and  at  Worms,  where  they  were  married 
Some  time  after  the  wedding  Frederick  held  a  great  Diet  at 
Mainz,  to  which  many  princes  and  nobles  came.  At  this 
Diet  he  decreed  that  private  warfare  should  be  unlawful  excepf 
in  cases  where  justice  could  not  be  obtained.  He  also 
established  an  Imperial  tribunal.,  made  up  of  a  judge  with 
certain  assessors,  which  was  to  decide  all  causes  not  affecting 
princes  of  the  Empire.  Frederick  did  not  stay  long  enough 
in  Germany  to  complete  the  work  he  had  begun.  In  1236 
he  returned  to  Italy,  and  he  never  again  visited  Germany. 
His  son  Conrad  was  left  to  fill  the  place  which  Henry  had 
forfeited. 

24.  The  Moguls. — Shortly  after  this  time  Germany  was 
threatened  by  the  Moguls.,  vast  hordes  of  whom  had  broken 
into  Europe  from  Asia.  In  1241  they  were  met  in  Silesia., 
with  a  very  inferior  force,  by  Henry  of  Liegnitz.  The 
Silesians  were  almost  all  cut  down,  and  Henry  himself  fell ; 
but  the  Moguls  had  met  with  such  stubborn  resistance  at 
the  very  borders  of  Germany  that  they  gave  up  all  thought 
of  entering  the  country,  and  marched  southwards  to 
Hungary. 

25.  Struggle  of  Frederick  II.  with  the  Pope. — Frederick 
found  in  hinocent  IV.  a  foe  more  bitter  and  dangerous 
than  even  Gregory  IX.  had  been.  These  Popes  declared 
that  Frederick  was  a  heretic,  and  had  sympathies  with 
Mahometanism ;  but  the  real  causes  of  tlieir  ha'-red  were, 


83 


THE  HOHENSTA  UEEN  EMPERORS,        [CHAf 


that  he  would  not  recognize  the  authority  of  the  Pope  as 
higher  than  that  of  the  Emperor,  and  that  his  possession  of 
the  kingdom  of  Sicily,  which  had  long  been  looked  on  as  a 
fief  of  the  Holy  See,  enabled  him  to  attack  the  Papacy  from 
the  south  as  well  as  from  the  north.  In  1245  Innocent  IV. 
not  only  renewed  the  sentence  of  excommunication  against 
Frederick,  but  solemnly  declared  him  dethroned.  This 
created  great  confusion  in  Germany.  A  party,  now  as 
always,  sided  with  the  Emperor  ;  but  the  spiritual  princes 
joined  the  Pope,  and  they  had  the  sympathy  of  all  those 
nobles  who  wished  to  make  use  of  the  Emperor's  difficulties 
for  the  purpose  of  adding  to  their  own  importance. 

26.  Election  of  rival  Kings.  Death  of  Frederick  II. 
and  of  Conrad  IV.— The  party  in  favour  of  the  Pope  met  at 
Wiirzburg^  and  elected  as  King  Henry  Raspe,  Landgrave 
of  Thuringia.  He  was  never  fully  acknowledged,  and 
died  in  1247.  On  his  death  the  same  clerical  party  again 
met,  and  declared  William  of  Holland^  a  youth  of  twenty, 
his  successor.  William  allied  himself  to  the  Welfic  house, 
but  in  South  Germany  he  was  utterly  powerless  against  the 
Emperor's  son  Conrad.  Meanwhile,  the  Imperial  authority 
almost  altogether  broke  down.  The  utmost  disorder  pre- 
vailed throughout  the  kingdom.  The  great  nobles  avenged 
their  own  wrongs,  and  robbery  became  so  common  that  a 
man's  person  and  property  were  safe  only  in  so  far  as  he 
was  able  to  fight  in  his  own  defence.  In  1250  the  Emperor, 
whose  attention  had  been  given  to  the  struggle  for  authority 
in  Lombardy,  died  at  Firenzuola.  After  his  death  the 
party  which  had  clung  to  him  recognized  his  son  Conrad 
IV.;  but  Conrad  died  in  1254.  Conrad  was  the  last  Hohen- 
staufen  King  in  Germany. 

27.  Conquest  of  Slavonic  lands. — The  Gerfnans  had 
long  been  pushing  their  way  eastwards.  Besides  taking 
possession  of  Brandenburg^  they  had  been  slowly  colonising 


IX.]     LOSS  OF  POWER  BY  THE  GERATAN  ICINGS,       83 


Lower  Silesia,  Ilolstein,  Mecklenburg,  and  Pojnerania, 
About  the  beginning  of  the  thirteenth  century  a  monk 
named  Christian  began  to  preach  in  Prussia.  The 
Prussians  resisted  him,  whereupon  a  Crusade  was  preached 
against  them,  and  many  warriors  came  to  Christian's  help 
About  1230  the  Knights  of  the  Teutonic  Order,  under  their 
Grand  Master,  Hermann  of  Salza,  came  to  Prussia,  and 
began  to  conquer  it.  Another  Order,  the  Kfiights  of  tht 
Sword^  had  before  conquered  Livonia.  In  1237  this  Order 
joined  the  Teutonic  Knights.  Kofiigsberg  was  founded 
in  1245,  and  received  its  name  in  honour  of  Ottocar,  King 
of  Bohemia,  who  took  part  in  the  crusade  against  Prussia. 
The  larger  part  of  Prussia  was  conquered  by  1 260,  when  a 
great  revolt  took  place.  Many  Germans  settled  in  the  land, 
and  in  1309  the  Order  was  established  in  its  seat  at 
Marienberg.  Warriors  came  from  all  parts  of  Europe  and 
joined  the  Order  in  fighting  the  Prussians.  Its  members 
were  bound  by  vows  like  monastic  orders ;  but  their 
manners  were  not  improved  by  prosperity. 

28.  Further  loss  of  power  by  the  German  Kings. — 
For  a  time  it  had  seemed  as  if  the  German  Kings  were  once 
more  to  become  strong  rulers  ;  and  if  the  Hohenstaufen 
dynasty  had  chosen  to  confine  itself  to  Germany,  it  might 
have  won  back,  and  added  to,  the  power  of  Charles  the 
Great,  of  Otto  the  Great,  and  of  Henry  III.  But,  as  we 
have  seen,  the  Hohenstaufen  Kings  were  almost  constantly 
engaged  in  distant  wars,  brought  about  by  their  position  as 
Emperors  and  Kings  of  Italy  arvd  (after  Frederick  I.'s 
time)  of  Sicily.  While  they  were  carrying  on  these  wars, 
the  German  princes  seized  one  royal  right  after  another, 
and  made  themselves  practically  independent.  Instead  of 
winning  back  their  rights,  the  Hohenstaufen  Kings  some- 
times gave  them  up  in  order  to  add  to  their  strength  at  the 
moment     By  two  Pragmatic  Sanctions  Frederick  II.  con- 


84  THE  IIOHENSTAUFEN  EMPERORS,        [chap. 

finned  the  princes  in  the  rights  they  had    seized  ;    the 
ecclesiastical  princes  in  1220,  the  secular  princes  in  1232. 
Where  he  was  present  his  authority  was  still  to  be  over  all  ; 
but  in  his  absence  the  princes  were  to  be  almost  independent 
sovereigns  within  their  towns  and  territories.     The  result  of 
the  weakness   thus  brought  about  was  that  the  German 
Kings    lost    almost    all    their   power  abroad.     Denmark, 
PoUind,  and  Hungary  ceased  to  owe  them  allegiance,  and 
Burgundy  began  to  fall,  bit  by  bit,  into  the  hands  of  France. 
29.  The  seven  Electors.— As  we  have  seen,  the  Kmgs 
were  in  early  times  elected  by  the  whole  body  of  freemen. 
When  feudalism  arose,  this  right  passed  into  the  hands  of 
the  nobles.     If  the  power  of  the  Kings  had  gone  on  increas- 
ing instead  of  becoming  less  and  less,  they  would  probably 
have  made  their  crown  hereditary  ;  but  their  growing  weak- 
ness enabled  the  nobles  to  hold  fast  the  right  of  election. 
The  Popes  encouraged  them  to  do  so,  for  much  of  the  Papal 
power  would  have  been  lost  if  any  one  family  could  have 
claimed  the  Imperial  crown  as  a  right.     Besides,  there  was 
a  general  feeling  that  the  position  of  Emperor  was  far  too 
great  and  sacred  to  be  entrusted  to  a  single  house.     The 
fact  that  three   successive   dynasties  failed  of  heirs  male 
also  helped  to  keep  the  crown  from  becoming  hereditary. 
Although  the  German  crown  remained  elective,  the  great 
body  of  the  nobles  soon  lost  their  electoral  rights.     For  a 
time  the  leading  princes  asked  the  aristocracy  to  approve 
their  choice  of  a  King,  but  in  the  end  their  choice  was 
accepted  as  final.     Those  who  thus  usurped  the  right  of 
electing  the  King  were  called  Electors.     There  were  now 
seven  Electors— three  spiritual  and    four  secular.      The 
spiritual  Electors  were  the  Archbishops  of  Maiyiz,  Koln, 
and  Trier.    The  Duke  of  Saxony  (the  small  Duchy  given 
by  Frederick  I.  to  Bernard,  son  of  Albert  the  Bear),  the 
Margrave  of  Brandenburg,  the  Rhenish  Palsgrave,  and  tho 


IX.] 


THE  ELECTORS, 


8S 


King  of  Bohemia,  were  the  secular  Electors.  The  threr 
Archbishops  were  Arch-chancellors  of  Germany,  of  Gaul 
and  Burgundy,  and  of  Italy  ;  and  each  of  the  seculai 
Electors  held  one  of  the  great  offices  of  the  Imperial  house- 
hold. These  offices  were  formerly  held  by  the  Dukes  ol 
Franconia,  Bavaria,  Saxony,  and  Lotharingia  ;  but  when 
the  Dukes  were  at  the  height  of  their  power,  the  right  oi 
electing  the  King  had  not  been  seized  by  a  few.  The  Duke 
of  Bavaria  would  probably  have  been  an  Elector,  but  the 
house  of  Wittelsbach  held  also  the  Rhenish  Palatinate,  and 
it  would  have  been  dangerous  if  the  electoral  dignity  had 
belonged  to  two  members  of  one  family.  The  right  of 
choosing  the  King  was  the  most  important  of  all  the  rights 
gained  by  the  leading  feudal  lords,  for  the  Electors  could 
keep  strong  men  from  the  throne,  and  make  those  whom 
they  appointed  confirm  them  and  their  fellow-princes  in 
their  independence.  The  Electors  were  above  all  other 
princes,  and  formed  a  separate  college  in  the  Diet. 

30.  The  German  Kings  and  the  Pope. — In  the  time 
of  the  Ottos  and  the  Henrys,  the  German  Kings,  as  Em- 
perors, confirmed,  and  even  appointed.  Popes.  From  the 
time  of  Innocent  HI.  the  Popes  claimed  the  right  to  review 
the  election  of  the  German  King,  and  to  reject  any  one 
whom  they  did  not  think  suitable.  This  was  another 
humiliation  brought  upon  the  German  kingdom  by  its  con- 
nexion with  the  Empire. 

31.  Increase  of  immediate  nobles. — The  Duchies  now 
no  longer  played  the  great  part  in  German  history  that  they 
had  once  played.  The  Duchy  of  Franconia  had  ceased  to 
exist  ;  and  when  Conradin,  the  son  of  Conrad  IV.,  perished 
in  1 268,  Swabia  also  fell  to  pieces.  The  Duchy  of  Saxony, 
in  the  old  sense,  had  never  been  restored  after  the  fall  of 
Henry  the  Lion.  Upper  Lotharingia  still  existed  ;  but  the 
Duchy  of  Lower  Lotharingia  was  more  nominal  than  real. 


86  THE  HOHENSTAUFEN  EMPERORS.        [chap, 


Bavaria  had  been  made  much  less  important  by  the  separa- 
tion of  Carinthia,  Austria,  and  Styria.  The  result  of  these 
changes  was  that  a  great  many  of  the  lower  order  of  nobles 
became  immediate.  That  is,  many  who  had  held  their 
lands  of  the  Dukes  now  held  them  of  the  crown.  This 
made  robbery  much  more  common  than  it  had  been,  and 
added  greatly  to  the  number  of  private  wars. 

32.  Leading  noble  houses.— It  may  be  well  to  mention 
some  of  the  leading  noble  families  who  now,  in  immediate 
dependance  on  the  crown,    shared   with   the   Church   the 
greater  part  of  the  land  of  Germany.      The  small  Saxon 
Duchy    was    divided    into    Laucnhnrg    and     Wittenberg. 
These  were  held  by  two  branches  of  Bernard's  family,  each 
of  which  thought  it  had  the  best  right  to  the  electoral 
dignity.      To  the  north  of  Wittenberg  was   the   powerful 
Margraviate  of  Brandenburg.      The  Dukes  of  Brunswick 
and  Litneburg,  and  the  Counts  of  Oldenburg,  of  Holstein, 
and  of  Schwerin,  all  held  what  had  once  been  Saxon  land, 
and  claimed  to  be  immediate.     Thuringia,  which  had  for 
some  time  been  joined  to  Saxony,  but  had  been  made  a 
Margraviate,  became  a  Landgraviate  in  the  time  of  the 
Hohcnstaufen.   The  Landgraves  pushed  their  way  westwards 
till  their  territory  took  in  Hessen  as  well  as  Thuringia.    This 
was  the  extent  of  country  ruled  by  Lewis  IV.   of  Thur- 
ingia, husband  of  the  famous  St.  Elizabeth  of  Hungary, 
In  1269  Thuringia  was  given  in  fief  to  Henry,  Margrave  of 
Meissen,  the  ancestor  of  the  present  royal  family  of  Saxony  ; 
while  Hessen  fell  to  Henry  of  Brabant,  a  grandson  of  Lewis 
IV.  by  the  female  line,  from  whom  the  later  Landgraves  ol 
Hessen  sprang.     The  Duchy  of  Bavaria  was  still  held  by 
the   house    of    Wittelsbach,  which    had   also   received  by 
marriage,  in  1227,  the  Rhenish  Ralatinatc.     To  the  east  of 
Bavaria  were  the  three  Duchies  which  had  at  different  times 
been  separated  from  \\.— Austria,  Styria,  and   Carinthia^ 


IX.] 


LEADING  NOBLE  HOUSES, 


87 


Styria  had  been  united  to  Austria  in  1192.  Frederick,  the 
last  Austrian  Duke  of  the  house  of  Babenberg,  died  in  1246. 
His  death  was  followed  by  a  time  of  great  confusion  in  the 
Austrian  lands.  After  much  fighting  with  the  Hungarians, 
Ottocar,  King  of  Bohemia,  at  last  got  possession  of  them 
for  some  tinae.  The  Counts  of  Wiirtemberg  were  among 
the  greatest  of  the  Swabian  nobles.  The  house  of  Zdh- 
ringen,  the  founder  of  which  Conrad  II.  had  placed  over 
Burgundy,  had  been  confined  by  Frederick  I.  to  the  Duchy 
of  Lesser  Burgundy,  to  the  east  of  the  Jura.  This  house 
died  out  in  the  thirteenth  century,  and  many  of  its  lands  fell 
to  the  Counts  of  Baden  and  the  Counts  of  Habsburg.  The 
Counts  of  Hohenzollern,  who  held  the  position  of  Burgraves 
of  Niirnberg,  were  also  powerful  Swabian  nobles,  and  re- 
ceived about  this  time  certain  Bavarian  lands  which  after- 
wards became  the  Duchies  of  Ansbach  2indBaireiith.  The 
Counts  of  Nassau  may  be  named  among  those  who  held 
ancient  Franconian  lands.  The  Duchy  of  Upper  Lothar- 
ingia  was  held  by  the  Counts  of  Elsass.  The  Dukes  of 
Lower  Lot^ringia  preferred  to  call  themselves,  aftev  their 
hereditary  possessions,  Dukes  of  Brabant.  Among  the 
nobles  in  this  part  of  Germany  who  claimed  to  be  immediate 
were  the  Counts  of  Luxemburg,  JiilicJi,  Geldern,  Cleve,  and 
Holland. 

33.  Lavrs  of  Inheritance. — So  long  as  a  Duke  or  other 
prince  was  looked  on  as  an  officer  of  the  crown,  his  lands 
were  inherited  by  his  eldest  son  ;  but  now  the  lands  of  most 
princes  were  divided  equally  among  all  the  sons.  The 
brothers  sometimes  lived  together  and  shared  the  power, 
but  they  more  commonly  divided  the  lands.  It  thus  often 
happened  that  there  were  a  number  of  independent  princi- 
palities, ruled  over  by  members  of  one  family.  At  first  each 
brother  obtained  absolute  possession  of  his  share  ;  but  as 
this  greatly  weakened  the  power  of  princely  houses,   i| 


88 


THE  HOHENSTAUFEN  EMPERORS.        [chap. 


IX.] 


LEAGUES  OF  TOWNS. 


89 


became  common  for  the  heirs  of  a  prince  to  make  arrange- 
ments which  kept  any  part  of  the  ficf  from  falhng  to  the 
crown  until  the  male  line  had  wholly  died  out.  In  the  end 
the  custom  of  primogeniture  was  adopted  by  several  great 
families — notably  by  the  house  which  has  become  in  our 
day  the  Imperial  family  of  Germany.  , 

34.  The  institution  of  knighthood. — The  institution  of 
knighthood,  which  the  Ciiisades  had  made  so  important, 
flourished  in  Germany  in  the  time  of  the  Hohenstaufcn.  It 
was  open  to  the  lower  as  well  as  to  the  higher  nobles  to 
become  knights,  so  that  the  institution  formed  a  bond  of 
union  between  the  two  orders.  The  son  of  a  nobleman 
usually  served  a  knight  for  some  years  tls  page  and  esquire^ 
and  was  afterwards  himself  knighted,  if  possible  by  a  noble 
of  high  rank.  Those  who  were  to  be  made  knights  pre- 
pared themselves  for  the  ceremony  by  religious  exercises, 
and  vowed  to  obey  the  King  or  Emperor,  to  uphold  the 
right,  to  defend  widows  and  orphans,  and  to  oppose  the 
infidels.  Every  knight  had  the  right  to  confer  the  honour 
of  knighthood.  He  could  also  take  part  in  tournaments^ 
which  were  often  held  at  the  courts  of  the  Emperor  and 
princes.  Knights  were  supposed  to  hold  women  in  high 
reverence.  They  were  by  no  means  always  so  pure  as  they 
are  sometimes  said  to  have  been  ;  but  in  Germany,  as  else- 
where, they  did  much  to  foster  a  spirit  of  generosity, 
courtesy,  and  honour,  at  a  time  when  these  qualities  were 
peculiarly  valuable. 

35.  The  towns. — The  towns  were  now  an  element  ot 
great  importance  in  Germany.  Almost  every  great  German 
town  at  present  existing  had  been  founded  by  the  time  of 
the  Hohenstaufcn.  The  Crusades  had  given  a  powerful 
impulse  to  trade,  so  that  the  burgher  class  generally  had 
become  veiy  rich.  When  the  Duchies  ceased  to  e.xist  or 
lost  their  old  importance,  many  towns  that  had  before  beer 


mediate  became  immediate.  The  immediate  towns  usually 
tried  to  get  rid  of  the  bailiffs  who  represented  the  crown'; 
and  in  the  thirteenth  century  many  of  them  succeeded  in 
domg  so,  and  thus  became  Free  Imperial  Towns,  still 
recognizing  the  supremacy  of  the  King  or  Emperor,  but 
ruhng  themselves  according  to  their  own  ideas.  When 
a  town  became  free,  a  struggle  very  often  arose  between  the 
old  families  or  Patricians  and  tl^e  Gilds,  and  it  usually 
ended  by  the  Patricians  having  to  yield  to  the  Gilds  some 
share  in  the  government.  The  free  imperial  towns 
became  far  too  powerful  to  be  left  out  of  the  national 
council.  In  the  end  their  deputies  formed  a  third  college 
in  the  Diet,  and  had  an  equal  vote  with  the  Electors  and 
princes. 

36.    Leag^ues  of  towns.      The  Hansa.— The  free  towns 
rarely  quarrelled  with  the  King  ;  but  they  were  almost  always 
at  war  with  the  nobles,  both  secular  and  spiritual.  This  led  to 
their  forming  Leagues  or  Confederations  for  mutual  defence. 
Several  of  these  Leagues  became  very  powerful.  The  Rhenish 
League,  which   was  formed  in  the  middle  of  the  thirteenth 
century,  took  in   no  fewer  than  seventy  towns.      But  of  all 
the  Leagues  of  cities,  the  Hansa  was  by  far  the  strongest. 
It  is  thought  by  some  to  have  arisen  from  a  treaty  made 
between  Z/V^^^Z'  and  Hamburg,  in  1 241,  for  the  protection 
of  their    commerce.      Other    northern  towns  soon  joined 
them,   and   a   League  was   formed   called    the    Hunseatic 
League,  which  in  the  end  took  in  upwards  of  eighty  cities. 
It  was  divided  into  four  groups,  of  which  the  chief  towns 
were  Liibeck,  Koln,  Brunswick,  and  Danzig,     The  Diet  of 
the  League  met  in  Lubeck,  which  was  looked  on  as  the 
head  town.      When  at  its  height  the  Hansa  carried  on  the 
whole  trade  of  the  Baltic  and  had  a  principal  share  i  1  that 
of  the  North  Sea.      It  had  fleets  and  armies,  and  often 
got  the  better  of  the  Northern  Kings.     It  even  made  itself 


90 


THE  hOHENSTAUFEN  EMPERORS,        [chap. 


respected  by  the  more  powerful  Kings  of  France  and 
England  ;  and  for  a  time  much  of  the  export  English  trade 
was  carried  on  by  Hanseatic  merchants.  In  England  they 
were  called  Easterlings — whence  the  word  Sterling. 

yj.  The  freeing  of  serfs.— About  the  time  of  the  Hohen- 
staufen  many  serfs  were  m:ide  free.  They  were  made  so  in 
various  ways.  Some  received  their  freedom  by  joining  the 
Crusades  ;  others  obtained  it  from  nobles  who  were  about 
to  set  out  for  the  Holy  Land  ;  while  others  fled  from 
tyrannical  lords,  and  found  refuge  in  the  cities.  The  cities 
willingly  took  them  in,  and  made  them  citizens — either 
Pfahlbiirger^  citizens  who  took  up  their  abode  in  the  suburbs, 
within  the  palisades  that  enclosed  the  lands  of  the  city,  or 
Ausbiirger^  citizens  who  lived  outside  the  city,  but  could 
claim  its  protection.  These  Pf.ihlbiirger  and  Ausbiirger 
were  a  source  of  constant  misunderstanding  between  the 
nobles  and  the  towns.  By  and  by  the  bet'er  ciiss  of  nobles 
began  to  feel  that  it  was  more  profitable,  ab  well  as  more 
Christian,  to  be  served  by  freemen  than  by  serfs  ;  but 
serfdom  continued  in  some  parts  of  Germany,  especially  the 
north,  till  quite  recent  times. 

38.  The  "  Sachsenspiegel "  and  **  Schwabenspiegel.'*— 
There  was  no  one  system  of  law  in  use  all  over  Germany. 
The  princes  administered  justice  in  accordance  with  local 
customs  and  traditions.  Early  in  the  thirteenth  century  a 
Saxon  noble,  Eike  of  Repgoiv^  brought  together  in  one  work 
the  laws  in  use  in  Saxony.  This  work  was  called  the 
Sachsenspicgd^  and  was  soon  looked  on  as  a  code  of  high 
authority  all  over  Germany.  Later  in  the  century  a 
Swabian  priest  wrote  the  Schivabcnspiegel^  which  iid  for 
the  usages  of  Swabia  what  the  Sachsenspiegcl  nad  done 
for  those  of  Saxony.  Afterwards  other  collections  were 
made  in  different  parts  of  the  kingdom.  During  the  twelfth 
and  thirl eenth  centuries  the  old  Roman  law  was  eagerly 


rx.] 


THE  FEMGERICHTE. 


91 


studied  in  the  Italian  Universities  ;  and  at  a  later  time  it 
came  into  very  general  use  in  Germany. 

39.  The  Femgerichte.— There  was   a  peculiar   class    of 
courts  of  justice  in  Westphalia,  called  Femgerichte.      They 
sprang  from  the  old  courts  of  Counts  which  Charles  the 
Great  had  first  appointed  in  Saxony,  and  which  went  on 
longer  in  Westphalia  than  elsewhere,  because  of  the  greater 
number  who  there  continued  to  hold  their  lands  by  a  free 
tenure.     Towards  the  end  of  the  twelfth  century  the  Counts 
began  to  call  themselves  Freigrafcn  or  Free  Counts;  and 
the  judges  who  with  a  Freigraf  foiTned  a  court  were  called 
Freischoffen  or  Free  Judges.  As  feudalism  advanced,  many 
Free   Counties  were  brought  under   secular    or    spiritual 
princes.     The  princes,  however,  did  not  gain  full  power 
over   them.     They   appointed   the   Free  Counts  ;    but  the 
latter  received  their  authority  from  the  King  or  Emperor, 
and  dispensed  justice  in  his  name.     The  Femgerichte  did 
not  meet,  as  has  often  been  said,  at  night  and  in  caves  or 
other  hidden  places.      They  met  in  open  day,   generally 
under  some  tree  ;  but  the  proceedings  of  the  court  were 
kept  secret.     No  case  was  taken  up  which  was  not  punish- 
able by  death.     If  an  accused  person  was  condemned,  he 
was  hanged  at  once.     Any  one  who  did  not  appear  after 
having   been    summoned   three   times  was  assumed  to  be 
guilty ;  and  sooner  or  later  he  was  certainly  put  to  death.    In 
those  lawless  times  the  oppressed  were  glad  to  find  a  court 
anywhere    which    gave   them   some   chance   of   obtaining 
justice.     Appeals  began,  therefore,  to  be  made  to  the  Fem- 
gerichte from  all  parts  of  Germany.     In  the  end  men  of  free 
birth,  to  whatever  part  of  the  country  they  belonged,  were 
allowed  to  become  Freischoffen,  and  many  thousands  of  all 
classes  availed  themselves  of  the  privilege.     For  a  consider- 
able time  the  Femgerichte  did  real  good,  for  nobles  who 
cared  nothing  for   King  or  Emperor  trembled  when  they 


92 


THE  HOIIENSTAUFEN  EMPERORS,        [chap. 


received  the  summons  of  some  Frcigraf  to  appear  at  a 
certain  date  before  a  secret  tribunal.  But  as  the  power 
of  the  Femgerichte  increased,  they  were  often  reckless  and 
unjust  ;  and  many,  especially  the  clergy,  cried  out  loudly 
against  them.  They  lost  nearly  all  their  power  in  the 
sixteenth  century ;  but  traces  of  them  long  afterwards 
existed  among  the  Westphalian  peasantry. 

40.  Architecture  and  Literature. — In  spite  of  the  wild 
lives  of  many  nobles,  the  age  of  the  liohcnstaufen  was  in 
some  respects  the  most  brilliant  of  the  Middle  Ages.  Many 
churches  were  built  in  a  new  style  of  architecture  called  the 
pointed  or  Gothic.  Of  these,  the  Cathedral  of  Koln,  which 
is  not  even  yet  finished,  was  the  most  splendid.  Poetry 
flourished  as  it  had  never  before  done  in  Germany.  This 
was  due  partly  to  the  influence  of  the  Troubadours  and 
Trouvhes.  The  Crusades  also  stincd  men's  imaginations 
by  opening  to  them  a  new  world  of  wonder  and  beauty. 
The  poets  were  called  Minnesiingcr  or  Love  Singers, 
They  wrote  many  romances,  the  favourite  heroes  of 
which,  in  Germany  as  well  as  in  France  and  England, 
were  Charles  the  Great  and  King  Arthur  with  the  Knights 
of  the  Round  Table.  Many  lyrics  were  also  written  which 
are  not  only  finely  finished  but  show  a  true  feeling  for 
everything  great  and  beautiful  in  nature  and  human  life. 
Several  of  the  Hohenstaufen  Emperors  and  various  princes 
were  themselves  poets.  Among  the  most  famous  of  the 
Minnesanger  were  Hcinrich  von  Veldecky  who  lived  towards 
the  end  of  the  twelfth  century  and  was  one  of  the  earliest  of 
his  class,  Wolfram  von  Eschenbach^  Gottfried  von  Strass- 
burg^  and  Walther  von  der  Vogelwcide.  There  were  many 
legends  of  German  heroes  in  dififcrent  parts  of  Germany. 
These  legends  were  kept  alive  in  the  minds  of  the  people 
by  wandering  singers,  who  long  addressed  themselves 
chiefly  to  the  common  folk,  but  were  afterwards  welcomed 


IX.I  ARCHITECTURE  AND  LITERA  TURE.  93 

to  the  castles  of  princes  and  nobles.  Of  the  legends  thus 
handed  down  from  generation  to  generation  some  were  put 
together  about  this  time,  and  made  into  the  great  national 
epics  of  the  Nibelungenlied  and  Gudrun.  The  age  of  the 
Hohenstaufen  was  thus  one  of  the  most  remarkable  epochs 
in  the  history  of  German  literature.  A  more  sordid  time 
foUowed  in  which  poetry  almost  altogether  vamshed. 


CHAPTER  X 

SOVEREIGNS  OF  DIFFERENT  HOUSES. 

Dtath  of  William  of  Holland;  election  oj  Alfonso  and  Richard; 
the  Interregnum  (l) — election  of  Rudolf  of  Habshnrg{2) — ivai 
betiveen  Rudolf  and  Ottocar^  King  of  Bohemia  (3) — the  House  oJ 
Habsburg  receives  Austria  (4) — good  government  of  Rudolf ;  his 
death  {S)—R'ing  Adolf  (6) — King  Albert  I.  {1)— King  Henry 
VII.  ;  his  son  John  becomes  King  of  Bohemia  (8) — Henry  VII, 
crowned  Emperor;  his  death  (9) — election  of  Frederick  of 
Austria  and  Le^vis  of  Bavatia  ;  war  ;  defeat  of  Frederick  (10) — 
struggle  of  Lewis  IV.  and  Pope  John  XXII,  (ll) — Lewis  IV, 
becomes  sole  King ;  is  crowned  Emperor  (12) — Lewis  IV.  sup- 
ported  by  his  subjects  against  the  Popes  (13) — election  of  Charles 
IV,  ;  death  of  Lewis  IV.  {14) — the  Kings  and  their  hereditary 
fands  (15) — the  Eidgenossen  or  Confederates ;  battle  of  Mor- 
garten  Pass  (16). 

I.  The  Interregnum. — After  the  death  of  Conrad  /K, 
William  of  Holland  was  the  only  King  in  Germany  ;  but 
he  was  quite  powerless.  He  was  killed  in  1256,  while  fight- 
ing against  the  Frisiars.  There  *ras  now  no  one  who  had 
my  particular  claim  to  the  crown.  The  Electors,  therefore, 
resolved  to  appoint  a  King  under  whom  they  and  their 
fellow  princes  could  confirm  their  independence.  Two 
foreigners — Alfonso^  King  of  Castile^  and  Richard,  Earl  of 
Cornwall,  brother  of  Henry  III. ,  of  England — were  very 
anxious  to  receive  the  crown.  As  both  bribed  the  Electors, 
one  party  chose  Richard  and  another  Alfonso.    The  period 


■wii^mii  111 


[CH.  X.] 


RUDOLF  OF  HABSBURG, 


95 


which  followed  this  double  election  is  called  the  Interreg- 
nitm,  Richard  was  crowned  King  at  Aachen  ;  but  after 
his  coronation  he  visited  Germany  only  three  times,  and 
he  never  interested  himself  much  in  its  affairs.  Alfonso 
never  even  came  to  Germany.  The  Interregnum  is  one 
of  the  darkest  periods  in  German  history.  The  princes  and 
immediate  nobles  ruled  their  lands  exactly  as  they  chose^ 
and  carried  on  many  wars  both  among  themselves  and 
against  the  cities.  The  petty  independent  barons,  whose 
numbers  now  so  much  increased,  were  almost  all  robbers, 
so  that  no  one  worth  robbing  dared  to  travel  unless  he 
was  strongly  guarded.  During  this  fierce  time  men 
thought  of  Frederick  Barbarossa,  and  dreamed  of  the 
day  when  he  should  awake  from  his  sleep  and  bring  back 
peace  and  order  to  Germany. 

2.  Election  of  Rudolf  of  Habsburg.— Richard  of  Cornwall 
died  in  1271.  The  Electors  would  have  been  in  no  hurry  to 
appoint  a  successor  ;  but  the  Pope  found  that  the  confusion 
caused  by  the  absence  of  the  royal  authority  in  Germany 
was  interfering  with  the  Papal  revenue.  He  therefore  let 
the  Electors  know  that  if  they  did  not  choose  a  King  he 
himself  would  appoint  one.  At  last,  in  1273,  Rudolf,  Count 
of  Habsburg,  was  elected.  Habsburg  was  in  Aargau  in  the 
south  of  Swabia.  Rudolf  was  a  brave  man,  and  sincerely 
anxious  to  put  down  the  disorders  which  were  ruining 
Germany.  He  was  greatly  strengthened  by  the  suppprt  of 
the  Church,  to  which  he  was  always  submissive. 

3.  Ottocar,  King  of  Bohemia.— By  far  the  most  power- 
ful prince  of  the  Empire  at  this  time  was  Ottocar,  King  of 
Bohemia.  Besides  his  native  kingdom,  he  now  held  Austria, 
Styria,  Carinthia,  and  Carniola.  He  ruled  these  lands 
very  harshly,  and  was  generally  disliked.  As  he  had  hoped 
to  have  been  made  King  of  the  Romans  himself,  he  refused 
to  acknowledge  Rudolf.     During  the  years  1274  and  1275 


v: 


96        so  VE REIGNS  OF  DIFFERENT  HOUSES,     [chap. 


he  was  three  times  summoned  to  do  homage  for  his  lands, 
but  he  would  not  yield.  In  1276,  therefore,  Rudolf  marched 
against  him.  Rudolf  had  a  large  army,  for  the  princes 
were  jealous  of  Ottocar,  and  anxious  to  see  him  humbled. 
Seeing  this,  Ottocar  became  afraid,  and  not  only  did  homage 
for  the  kingdom  of  Bohemia,  but  resigned  Austria  and  the 
neighbouring  lands.  Most  of  the  princes,  thinking  the  war 
was  at  an  end,  returned  to  their  territories.  When  they 
had  done  so,  Ottocar  began  the  war  again,  hoping  to  find 
Rudolf  unprepared.  In  1278  a  fierce  battle  was  fought  at 
the  Marchficld,  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Danube.  Both 
sides  fought  bravely,  but  at  last  the  Bohemians  were 
defeated,  and  Ottocar  himself  was  killed. 

4.  The  House  of  Habsburg  receives  Austria. — Some 
time  after  his  victory  ovei  Ottocar,  Rudolf,  with  the  consent 
of  the  princes,  gave  Austria,  Styria,  Carinthia,  and  Carniola 
in  fief  to  his  sons,  Albert  and  Rudolf.  Afterwards  Carinthia 
was  given  to  Count  Meinhard  of  Tyrol^  whose  daughter 
was  Albert's  wife  ;  and  the  othe  lands  were  left  in  the 
hands  of  Albert  alone.  By  these  arra  igements  King  Rudolf 
laid  the  foundations  of  the  future  gr  jatness  of  the  house  of 
Habsburg. 

5.  Rudolf's  government.  His  death. — The  crown  lands 
of  Germany  had  at  one  time  been  very  extensive  ;  but  by 
the  time  Rudolf  became  King,  they  had  nearly  all  passed 
into  the  hands  of  great  nobles.  Some  of  them  had  been 
sold  by  different  Emperors  to  provide  money  for  the  wars 
/.arried  on  in  Italy ;  others  had  been  seized  by  the  Pals- 
graves who  administered  them,  and  by  neighbouring  princes. 
Nearly  all  the  royal  dues  had  also  been  seized  or  granted 
away.  Rudolf  strove  hard  to  win  back  the  royal  lands  and 
dues  which  had  been  unjustly  taken  during  the  Interregnum; 
and  in  spite  of  the  difficulties  in  his  way  he  was  to  some 
extent  successful.     But  he  probably  did  most  for  Germany 


X.J 


KING  ADOLF, 


97 


as  an  administrator  of  justice.  He  revived  the  system  of 
judicial  procedure  and  police  set  up  by  Frederick  II.,  and 
rode  through  nearly  every  part  of  the  kingdom,  trying 
to  put  a  stop  to  private  war,  and  ridding  the  country  of 
robbers.  In  Thuringia  alone  he  caused  twenty-nine  robber 
nobles  to  be  executed,  and  destroyed  sixty-nine  strongholds. 
In  1291  he  tried  to  get  his  son  Albert  elected  King  ;  but  the 
Electors  refused  to  appoint  a  successor  during  his  lifetime, 
nominally  on  the  ground  that  the  revenues  of  the  crown, 
which  could  ill  support  one  King,  could  much  less  support 
two.  In  September  of  the  same  year  Rudolf  died,  in  the 
seventy-fourth  year  of  his  age.  His  good  government  had 
made  him  a  great  favourite  with  the  common  folk.  If  the 
royal  power  had  not  been  thoroughly  undermined  before  he 
became  King,  he  would  have  done  much  more  to  make 
Germany  great  and  prosperous. 

6.  King  Adolf. — Rudolfs  successor  was  Adolf  Count  ol 
Nassau,  Adolf  was  very  poor,  and  had  no  great  personal 
qualities.  He  was  elected  chiefly  through  the  influence  of 
Gerhard^  Archbishop  of  Mainz,  his  cousin,  who  hoped  to 
use  the  new  King  as  a  tool  for  the  attainment  of  his  own 
ends.  Like  Rudolf,  Adolf  tried  to  win  back  some  of  the 
royal  lands  and  dues  ;  but  he  could  do  very  little  against 
powerful  nobles.  He  formed  an  alliance  -w'lih.  Edward  I. 
of  England,  who  sent  him  a  large  sum  of  money  on  con- 
dition that  he  should  declare  war  with  France.  At  this 
time  Thuringia  was  ruled  by  a  very  worthless  Landgrave, 
Albert  the  Degenerate.  With  the  money  received  from 
Edward  I.  (for  which  no  return  was  ever  made)  Adolf 
bought  Thuringia  from  Albert.  This  gave  rise  to  war,  for 
Albert's  two  sons  refused  to  give  up  their  inheritance,  and 
they  were  supported  by  some  princes  and  by  their  own 
vassals.  Meanwhile  Adolf  had  been  by  no  means  so  sub- 
missive to   Gerhard  as  the  latter   had    hoped.      Taking 

G 


98        SOVEREIGNS  OF  DIFFERENT  HOUSES  [chap. 

advanta-e,  therefore,  of  the  discontent  aroused  by  Adolf's 
doings  in  Thuringia,  Gerhard  persuaded  the  Electors  to 
dethrone  him,  and  to  elect  Albert,  Duke  of  Austria,  King 
Rudolfs  son.  Adolf  resisted,  but  in  1 298  he  was  killed  in  a 
battle  near  Worms.  Albert  was  then  re-elected  and  crowned 

7.  King  Albert  I.— Albert  had  none  of  his  father  Rudolfs 
winning  qualities.     He  had  been  a  severe  ruler  in  his  own 
lands,  and  was  anxious  to  make  his  house  rich  and  great. 
He  tried  to  get  possession  of  Bohemia— his  son  Rudolf  v^^^ 
King  of  Bohemia  for  a  few  months— and  the  county  of 
Holtand  ;    and   he   entered   Thuringia  for  the  purpose  of 
driving  out  Frederick,  one  of  the   two  brothers  who  had 
resisted  Adolf,  and  now  Landgrave.     Frederick  bravely  de- 
fended himself,  and  was  at  last  allowed  to  keep  his  lands  m 
peace.     Albert's  schemes  for  enriching  his  family  were  cut 
short  by  a  violent  death.    His  nephew,  John,  whom  he  kept 
from  his  inheritance,  formed  a  conspiracy  with  four  other 
nobles;  and  on  May  i,  1308,  when  the  King  had  just  crossed 
the  Reuss,  and  was  within  sight  of  the  castle  of  Habsburg, 
they  fell  upon  him  and  killed  him.     A  convent  was  after- 
wards built  on  the  spot  where  the  murder  had  been  com- 
mitted.   Albert  had  declared    Vienna  the  capital  of  the 
realm  in  Austria. 

8.  Henry  VH.— The  Electors,  being  jealous  of  the  house 
of  Austria,  chose  as  King,  not  one  of  Albert's  sons,  but 
Henry,  Count  of  Liitzelburg  or  Luxemburg.  Henry  did  not 
live  to  do  much  for  Germany  ;  but  he  appears  to  have  been 
one  of  the  wisest  of  her  Kings.  His  son  John,  with  the 
consent  of  the  Bohemian  States,  married  Elizabeth,  grand- 
daughter of  King  Ottocar,  and  thus  became  King  of  Bohemia. 
Bohemia  long  remained  in  the  possesssion  of  the  house  oi 
Luxemburg,  so  that  Henry,  like  King  Rudolf,  was  the  means 
of  making  his  own  family  very  powerful. 


X.1 


LEWIS  IV. 


99 


9     Henry    VH.    becomes    Emperor.     His    death.— No 
Gcnnan    King,    since    Frederick    IL,   had   been  crowned 
Emperor.     King  Rudolf  had  said,  "  Rome  is  like  the  lion  s 
den  in  the  fable-one  may  see  the  footsteps  of  many  who 
have  gone  there,  but  of  none  who  have  come  hack. "    The 
connexion  between  Germany  and  Italy  was  now  practically 
at  an  end  ;  and  for  an  Emperor  to  have  claimed  authority 
over  any  other  of  the  leading  European  countries  would 
have  been  ridiculous.     But  the  Germans  had  long  been 
accustomed  to  think  of  themselves  as  the  Imperial  race. 
For  centuries  their  Kings  had,  at  least  in  name,  been  rulers 
of  the  world.     Although  all  life  had  gone  out  of  the  Empire, 
they  were  unwilling  to  lose  the  distinction  which  its  con- 
nexion with  their  crown  gave  them.      King  Henry  himself 
^,-as  anxious  to  become  Emperor.     In  1310,  therefore,  he 
went  to  Italy,  and  received  both  the  Italian  and  the  Imperial 
.Towns       He  would   probably  have  restored  the  Empire  to 
some  of  its  old  greatness,  but  he  died  suddenly  at  Buoncon^ 

vento  in  1313-  . ,       .     rr, 

10  Election  of  Frederick  of  Austria  and  Lewis  of  Bavana 
-In  choosing  a  successor  to  Henry  VII.,  the  Electors  were 
divided    into    two    parties.     One  chose  Uwis,   Duke  of 
Bavaria;  another,  Frederick,  Duke  of  Austria,  eldest  son 
of  King  Albert.     Frederick  was  so  handsome  that  he  was 
known  as  Frederick  the  Fair.       Both    candidates    were 
crowned,  Lewis  at  Aachen,  and  Frederick  at  Bonn.     The 
result  of  this  double  election  and  coronation  was  a  terrib.e 
war,  which  lasted  for  ten  years,  and  did  great  harm  to 
Gennany.    The  towns  for  the  most  part  sided  with  Lewis  ; 
the  nobles  with  Frederick.     At  last,  in  1322,  a  great  battle 
was  fought  near  Miihldorf.    The  Austrians  were  defeated, 
and   Frederick  was  taken   prisoner,  and  confined  m  the 
(fastle  of  Trausnitz  in  the  IJppcr  Palatinate. 

i:.    Lewis    IV.    and    Pope    John    XXIL -  Frederick's 


■ii»i>  ""r  - 


ICX> 


SOVEREIGNS  OF  DIFFERENT  HOUSES,  [chap. 


brother,  Duke  Leopold,  and  other  princes,  would  not  accept 
the  battle  of  iMuhldorf  as  decisive.  Their  cause  was 
greatly  strengthened  by  a  quarrel  in  which  Lewis  became 
involved  with  Pope  John  XXI L  The  latter  was  angry 
with  Lewis  for  acting  as  King  of  the  Romans  wUhout 
having  received  the  Papal  sanction.  Lewis  mamtained 
that  he  received  his  dignity,  not  from  the  Pope,  but  from 
the  Electors.  As  he  held  by  this  opinion,  the  Pope  not  only 
excommunicated  him,  but  placed  under  the  interdict  those 
parts  of  Germany  which  supported  him.  Thus  the  old 
quarrel  between  the  spiritual  and  the  secular  powers  once 

more  broke  out. 

12.  Lewis  IV.  becomes  sole  King;  is  crowned  Emperor. 
—Anxious  to  obtain  peace,  Lewis  set  f>ederick  free  in  1325, 
on  securing  a  promise  from  him  that  he  would  give  up  all 
claims  to  the  crown.  The  Pope  and  Duke  Leopold,  Frede- 
rick's brother,  refused  to  be  bound  by  this  agreement ;  but 
Frederick  remained  true  to  his  word.  At  last,  in  September, 
1325,  Lewis  and  Frederick  agreed  to  share  the  power  be- 
tween them.  This  agreement  was  carried  out ;  but  Frederick 
took  little  interest  in  public  affairs,  and  died  in  1 330.  Lewis 
then  became  sole  King.  The  years  between  1327  and  1330 
he  had  spent  in  Italy,  where  he  had  been  crowned  Emperor, 
first  by  two  heretical  Bishops,  and  afterwards  by  a  Pope  of 
his  own  creation,  called  Nicholas  V. 

13.  Lewis  IV.  supported  by  his  subjects  against  the 
Popes.— Although  Lewis  had  appointed  an  anti-Pope,  he 
tried  hard  to  be  reconciled,  first  to  Pope  John,  and  afterwards 
to  Benedict  XIL,  John's  successor.  His  efforts  failed,  partly 
because  they  were  opposed  by  France,  on  which  the  Popes 
were  at  this  time  practically  dependant,  and  which  wished 
to  keep  the  Empire  weak.  But  the  Papacy  no  longer  held 
tne  position  with  respect  to  Germany  which  it  had  held  i» 
:he  days  of  Henry  IV.  and  Frederick  II.    The  cities  and 


\ 


X.1 


LEWIS  IV, 


101 


many  of  the   princes,  seeing  that  Papal  interference  had 
always  brought  strife  into  the  kingdom,  had  become  more 
and  more  jealous  of  the  Popes.     The  Popes  therefore  found, 
in  their  quarrel   with  Lewis,  that  they  had  no  longer  the 
support  of  public  opinion,  which  had  made  former  Popes 
all-powerful.     When  Lewis  had  failed  to  conciliate  Benedict, 
the  States  met  at  Frankfurt  in  1338,  and  openly  sided  with 
the  Emperor.     The  Electors,  with  the  exception  of  King 
John  of  Bohemia,  who  was  jealous  of  the  house  of  Bavaria, 
.  and  one  of  Lewis's  most  persistent  enemies,  met  at  Reuse,  on 
the  Rhine,  and  made  a  solemn  declaration  that  the  Emperor 
or  King  of  the  Romans  derived  his  rank  and  power,  not 
from  the  Pope,  but  from  the  choice  of  the  Electoral  princes. 
This  meeting  of  the  Electors  was  the  first  Electoral  League. 
Their  decision  was  accepted  by  the  States,  proclaimed  by 
the  Emperor,  and  became  part  of  the  law  of  the  land.     It 
was  a  decision  of  great  importance,  as  it  legally  established 
the  independence  of  the  Empire. 

14.  Election  of  Charles  IV.  Death  of  Lewis  IV.— A 
wise  sovereign  would  have  known  how  to  use  the  popular 
feeling  in  his  favour  so  as  to  strengthen  his  own  power;  but 
Lewis  was  very  imprudent.  In  1323  he  had  given  the 
Mark  of  Brandenburg  in  fief  to  his  son  Lewis.  He  was 
anxious  that  this  same  son  should  receive  Tyrol ;  but 
Margaret  Maiiltasch,  the  heiress  of  Tyrol,  was  already 
married  to  a  son  of  King  John  of  Bohemia.  Lewis  dis- 
solved Margaret's  marriage,  and  gave  her  a  dispensation 
to  marry  his  own  son.  In  taking  this  step  he  attacked  a 
i-'apal  right  which  all  acknowledged.  He  therefore  not 
only  made  reconciliation  with  the  Pope  impossible,  but 
turned  against  him  many  who  had  hitherto  supported  him. 
He  also  roused  the  jealousy  of  the  princes  by  greatly 
enriching  his  family.  He  had  made  his  son  Lewis  a 
wealthy  prince ;    and  on  the  death  of  William    IV.    of 


I02       SOVEREIGNS  Of  DIFFERENT  HOUSES.  Lchap. 


Holland,  the  brother  of  his  second  wife,  he  gave  the 
counties  of  Holland,  Seeland,  and  Hennegau  in  fief  to  his 
son  William.  The  ill-will  roused  by  Lewis  found  expres- 
sion in  1344  at  a  second  assembly  of  the  Electors,  where 
the  princes  brought  many  accusations  against  him.  Two 
years  afterwards  Pope  Clonent  VI.  declared  him  deposed. 
This  time  the  Electoi-s  were  at  one  with  the  Pope,  and 
chose  to  the  vacant  throne  Charles^  Margrave  of  Moravia., 
and  son  of  King  John  of  Bohemia.  Lewis  still  claimed  to 
be  King  and  Emperor  ;  but  he  died  suddenly  during  a  boai 
hunt  in  1 347. 

1 5.  The  Kings  and  their  hereditary  lands.— Lewis  had  not, 
like  most  of  the  Kings  before  him,  given  up  his  hereditary 
lands  ;  and  after  his  time  no  German  King  did  so.  The 
reason  was  that  the  public  revenues  had  become  too  small 
to  support  the  royal  and  Imperial  dignity.  The  change 
was  not  altogether  good  for  the  country.  The  King  was 
now  tempted  to  neglect  the  general  interests  of  Germany 
for  those  of  his  own  immediate  subjects,  and  to  look  on  the 
crown  as  little  more  than  a  means  of  enriching  himself  and 
his  family. 

16.  The  Eidgenossen  or  Confederates.— It  was  during 
the  reign  of  Lewis  IV.  that  the  famous  battle  of  Morgarten 
Pass  was  fought.  The  people  of  SchwyZy  Uri,  and  Unter- 
waldtm,  three  districts  lying  round  what  is  now  called  the 
Lake  of  Luzern,  had  always  been  free,  doing  allegiance  to 
none  save  the  King  or  Emperor.  When  the  Counts  of 
Habsburg  became  Dukes  of  Austria,  they  began  to  covet 
these  districts,  within  which  they  already  had  estates,  and 
to  wish  to  add  them  to  their  hereditary  possessions.  The 
three  districts  had  already,  like  other  districts  and  cities  of 
Germany,  formed  a  League  for  mutual  defence ;  but 
they  now  drew  closer  together,  and  prepared  to  tight,  it* 
accessary,  for  their  freedom.     In  131 5,  soon  after  the  ouc- 


X.1 


THE  EIDGENOSSEN. 


103 


break  of  war  between  Frederick  and  Lewis  IV.,  Leopold, 
Duke  of  Austria,  marched  against  the  League,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  breaking  it  up  and  subduing  the  people.     But  his 
fine  army  was  utterly  routed  in  Morgarlen  Pass,  and  he 
himself  escaped  with  difficulty.      After  this  the  League  was 
favoured  by  Lewis  IV.     During  his  time  it  was  joined  by 
the  city  of  Lnzern;  and  soon  after  his  death  the  cities  of 
Zurich,  Zug,  Glarus,  and  Bern  also  joined  it,  one  after  the 
other.  The  League  thus  became  very  strong,  and  its  various 
members  added  to  their  power  by  seizing  or  buying,  when- 
ever they  had  a  chance,  the  lands  of  neighbouring  nobles. 
The  members  of  the  League  were  called  Eidgenossen  or 
Confederates;  the  League  itself  was  the  Old  League  0/ High 
Germany.     It  was  not  till  long  afterwards  that  the  whole 
Confederation  received  the  name  which  properly  belonged 
to  the  one  canton  of  SchwjfM. 


CHAPTER  XI, 


THE  LUXEMBURG  EMPERORS, 


Charles  IV,  ;  crowned  Emperor ^  and  King  of  Burgitndy  (i) — the 
plague  in  Germany ;  persecution  of  the  Jews  {2) — Charles  //'. 
grants  the  Golden  Bull  (3) — Charles  IV.  adds  to  his  hereditaiy 
lands  ;  his  good  government  of  them  ;  his  death  (4) — the  House 
of  Austria  receives  Carinihia  and  Tyrol  (5) — bad  government  of 
King  Wenceslaus ;  the  S^uabian  League  (6) — the  battles  of 
Sempach  and  Ndfels  (7) — VVeiueslaus  deposed ;  King  Rupert  (8) 
election  of  Jobst  and  Sigmund ;  death  ofjobst;  Sigmund  re- 
elected (9) — the  Council  of  Constanz  (10) — increased  power  of  the 
Eidgenossen  (il) — the  doctrines  of  Wy cliff e  tn  Bohemia ;  John 
Huss  summoned  before  th^  Council  of  Constanz  ;  he  is  burned  as 
a  heretic  ;  Jerome  of  Prague  also  burned  (12) — the  Hussite  War; 
John  Zisca  (13) — t/ie  Calixtines  and  t/ie  Taborites ;  the  Calix- 
tines  except  the  terms  of  the  Council  of  Basel ;  the  Taborites 
defeated;  Sigmund  becomes  King  of  Bohemia ;  his  death  (14) 
--Frederick  of  Hohenzollern  receives  Brandenburg ;  Frederick  of 
Meissen  receives  Scuhsen- Wittenberg  (15). 

I.  Charles  IV. — The  house  of  Bavaria  refused  at  first  to 
acknowled<;e  Charles  IV. ;  and.  with  the  help  of  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Mainz,  got  Edward  III.  of  England,  and  after- 
wards Frederick,  Margrave  of  Meissen,  elected.  Neither  of 
these  would  accept  the  crown.  GUnther,  Count  of  Schwarz- 
burg,  was  elected  in  1349,  and  might  have  proved  a  for- 
midable rival  to  Charles  ;  but  he  suddenly  died,  perhaps  by 
poison,  soon  after  his  election.     Charles  was  then  crowned 


T 


[CH.  XI.] 


THE  GOLDEN  BULL. 


l^'-x 


again  at  Aachen,  and  reigned  without  opposition.  In  1355 
he  was  crowned  Emperor  at  Rome,  and  in  1365  King  of 
Burgundy  at  Aries. 

2.  The  plague  in  Germany ;  persecution  of  the  Jews. — 
In  1349  Germany  suffered,  like  the  rest  of  Europe,  from 
a  fearful  plague,  known  in  England  as  the  Black  Death, 
which  had  been  brought  to  Italy  by  ships  from  the  East, 
and  quickly  spread  to  other  countries.  Hundreds  of 
thousands  died  within  a  short  time.  Everywhere  men 
were  anxious  and  disturbed,  and  submitted  to  all  kinds  of 
penances  to  appease  what  was  believed  to  be  the  Divine 
wrath.  A  belief  arose  that  the  Jews  had  brought  on  the 
plague  by  poisoning  springs  and  rivers.  This  led  to 
a  persecution  so  dreadful  that  many  Jews  set  fire  to  their 
houses  and  perished  in  the  flames  rather  than  fall  into  the 
hands  of  their  enemies.  It  was  only  when  the  princes,  and 
especially  the  spiritual  princes,  interfered  that  the  persecu- 
tion gradually  died  out. 

3.  The  Golden  Bull.— Charles  IV.  almost  wholly  neglected 
Germany.  Instead  of  trying  to  win  back  the  crown  lands, 
he  sold  what  still  remained  of  them.  He  also  enriched 
himself  by  selling  honours  and  privileges,  raising  many, 
In  return  for  money,  to  noble  and  even  princely  rank. 
In  1356  he  granted  a  charter  called  the  Golden  Bull,  which 
finally  settled  eveiything  connected  with  the  election  of  the 
Kmg.  The  number  of  the  Electors  was  fixed  at  seven. 
The  King  of  Bohemia  was  not  only  confinned  in  his  right 
of  voting,  but  was  declared  the  first  secular  Elector.  The 
Archbishop  of  Mainz  was  made  convener  of  the  Electoral 
College.  All  cases  were  to  be  decided  by  a  majority 
of  votes.  The  elections  were  always  to  take  place  at  Frank- 
furt, and  the  coronations  at  Aachen.  The  Electors  had 
alreatly  acquired  a  great  position ;  but  the  Golden  Bull  added 
to  tneir  importance.     They  received  full  sovereign  rigl 


io6 


THE  LUXEMBURG  EMPERORS, 


[CHAP. 


within  their  territories  ;  there  was  to  be  no  appeal  from  their 
courts  unless  they  refused  to  dispense  justice  ;  and  their 
persons  were  declared  sacred.  These  privileges  raised 
them  still  further  above  other  princes,  and  made  them, 
taken  together,  of  more  impoitance  than  the  King  or 
Emperor. 

4.  Charles  IV.  and  his  hereditary  lands.— Charles  greatly 
increased  his  hereditary  lands.  By  his  second  wife  he 
obtained  the  Upper  Palatinate;  and  he  united  the  whole  of 
Silesia  and  Lower  Lusatia  to  Bohemia.  He  also  gained 
the  Mark  of  Brandenburg  from  the  house  of  Bavaria. 
While  he  was  a  bad  German  King  and  Emperor,  he  ruled 
all  the  lands  directly  subject  to  him  in  a  very  enlightened 
spirit.  Bohemia  flourished  under  him  as  it  had  done  under 
no  former  King.  He  greatly  improved  Prague,  the 
Bohemian  capital,  and  founded  there  a  University  which 
soon  became  a  famous  centre  of  thought  and  learning. 
Charles  died  at  Prague  in  1378.  Two  years  before  the 
Electors  had  chosen  his  son  VVenceslaus  to  be  King  of  the 
Romans. 

5.  Growing  power  of  the  House  of  Austria.— The  house  of 
Austria,  like  that  of  Luxemburg,  added  greatly  to  its  power 
about  this  time.  In  1335  it  received  Carint/iia,  aher  the 
death  of  Henry,  the  last  descendant,  in  the  male  line,  of 
Meinhard,  to  whom  King  Rudolf  had  given  the  Duchy. 
When  Margaret  MaultasJi,  Henry's  daughter,  died  in 
1366,  Tyrol  was  claimed  by  the  house  of  Bavaria  ;  but 
m  1369  it  was  finally  given  up  to  the  house  of  Austria,  to 
which  Margaret  had  bequeathed  it.  From  this  time  Carin- 
thia  and  Tyrol  always  belonged  to  the  Dukes  of  Austria. 

6.  King  Wenceslaus.  The  Swabian  League.— Wenceslaus 
was  neither  a  good  Bohemian  nor  a  good  German  King. 
He  was  a  man  of  coarse  nature,  fond  of  low  pleasures,  and 
sometimes   savagely  cruel.      The  result  of   his  and    hii 


I 


xr.l  THE  BAITLES  OF  SEMPACH  AND  NAFELS.  107 


fa.ther's  neglect  of  Germany  was  that  something  like  the 
confusion  of  the  Inferregnujn  returned.  There  were  never 
more  robber  barons,  and  there  were  petty  wars  everywhere 
throughout  the  kingdom.  The  towns  had  to  maintain  their 
freedom  by  constant  fighting.  Those  of  Swabia,  following 
the  example  of  the  Eidge7tossen  and  of  the  Rhenish  and 
Hansa  towns,  formed  at  this  time  a  great  League,  which 
took  in  at  first  thirty-four,  and  afterwards  forty-one  towns, 
together  with  some  nobles.  If  there  had  been  a  King 
in  Germany  wise  enough  to  ally  himself  with  this  and  the 
other  Confederations,  much  of  the  royal  power  might  have 
been  won  back  ;  but  Wenceslaus  was  too  indolent  to  do 
more  than  give  a  feeble  encouragement  to  the  various 
Leagues.  In  opposition  to  the  Leagues  of  towns,  the  princes 
and  nobles  also  formed  Confederations,  to  which  they  gave 
such  names  as  the  Society  of  St.  George,  St.  William,  the 
Lion,  or  the  Panther. 

7.  The  Battles  of  Sempach  and  Niifels. — During  the 
reign  of  Wenceslaus,  Duke  Leopold  of  Austria,  nephew  of 
the  Leopold  who  had  fought  at  Morgarten  Pass,  made  a 
great  effort  to  conquer  the  Eidgenossen,  who  had  received 
into  their  League  some  towns  owing  allegiance  to  Austria. 
Leopold  was  joined  by  many  princes  and  nobles,  who  were 
jealous  of  the  growing  power  of  the  League.  A  great  battle 
was  fought  at  Setnpach  in  1386.  The  Austrians  and  their 
allies  were  utterly  defeated ;  and  Leopold  himself  was 
killed.  Two  years  afterwards  an  important  victory  was 
gained  b>  Glarus  at  Ndfels.  In  consequence  of  these 
victories,  the  Eidgenossen  were  allowed  to  keep  the  lands 
they  had  conquered  and  the  towns  which  had  voluntarily 
joined  them. 

8.  Wenceslaus  deposed.    King  Rupert. — Wenceslaus^ 
so  bad  a  King  that  in  1400  the  Electors  met  and  cj 
him,  on  the  ground  that  he  wholly  failed  in  hi^ 


io8 


THE  LUXEMBURG  EMPERORS, 


[chap. 


were  stined  up  to  do  this  by  Boniface  IX.y  one  of  the  two 
Popes  who  at  this  time  divided  the  Weste'-n  Church,  ar>d 
both  of  whom  Wenccslaus  had  wished  to  depose.  By  a 
majority  of  votes  the  Electors  chose  Rupert  of  the  Palatinate 
as  Wenceslaus'  successor.  Rupert  was  in  every  way  worthy 
of  his  position  ;  but  a  party  still  supported  Wenceslaus,  and 
even  those  who  were  in  favour  of  the  new  King  were  not 
inclined  to  give  him  more  than  a  nominal  obedience.  Con- 
sequently nothing  of  any  importance  was  done  during  his 
reign.  He  tried  to  go  to  Rome,  but  was  defeated  at  Brescia 
In  1410  he  died. 

9.  King  Sigmund.— Two  Kings  were  now  elected,  Jolist, 
Margrave  oi  Moravia,  and  Sigmund,  brother  of  Wenceslaus. 
Sigmund  was  Margrave  of  Brandenburg,  and  had  been 
made  King  of  Hungary.  Jobst  very  soon  died,  so  that  a 
new  election  took  place.  This  time  the  votes  of  all  the 
Electors  were  for  Sigmund.  Great  hopes  were  raised  by 
his  election,  for  he  had  some  good  qualities  ;  but  in  the 
end  he  often  showed  himself  rash  and  narrow-minded.  He 
lacked  firmness,  and  was  thus  led  sometimes  to  do  things 
probably  condemned  by  his  own  better  judgment. 

10.  The  Council  of  Constanz. — There  were  at  this  time 
three  Popes,  and  in  Germany,  as  elsewhere,  many  abuses 
had  crept  into  the  Church.  Benefices  were  often  sold  to 
the  highest  bidder,  and  the  moral  condition  of  the  clergy 
was  in  many  cases  very  bad.  A  General  Council  had 
met  at  Pisa  in  1409,  but  Sigmund  induced  Pope  John 
XXIII.  to  join  him  in  summoning  another,  which  assem- 
bled at  Constanz  in  141 4,  and  sat  till  141 8.  Sigmund 
took  a  leading  part  in  the  proceedings  of  the  Council  of 
Constanz,  and  even  went  to  Spain  to  try  to  induce  Benedict 
1^^.  to  carry  out  its  wishes  by  resigning.  W^hiie  he  was 
^  Germany  at  this  time,  Sigmund  visited  Parii 


xi.l 


JOHN  HUSS, 


109 


II.  Increased  power  of  the  Eidgenossen.— The  assembling 
of  the  Council  was  indirectly  the  means  of  adding  greatly  to 
the  importance  of  the  Eidgenossen.    After  having  promised 
to  resign,  Pope  John  XXIII.  fled  from  Constanz  to  Schaff- 
hausen,  where  he  found   refuge  in   the    castle    of    Duke 
Frederich  of  Austria.     Sigmund  put  Frederick  to  the  ban 
of  the  Empire,  and  stirred  up  the  Eidgenossen  to  make  war 
on  him.     Bern  at  once  did  so  ;  and  it  was  soon  joined  by 
the  other  cantons.       When   Frederick  made    peace  with 
Sigmund  he  received  back  many  of  his  possessions  ;  but 
the  Eidgenossen  refused  to  give  up  what  they  had  con- 
quered.    They  thus  kept  Aargau,  in  which  was  the  castle 
of  Habsburg,  and  other  lands  and  towns. 

12.  The  doctrines  of  Wycliffe  in  Bohemia.     John  Huss. — 
At  this  time  a  movement  was  going  on  in  Bohemia  which 
led  to  very  important  results.     The  University  of  Prague, 
which   Charles    IV.   had  founded,   was   divided   into  four 
nations— ih^  Bohemian,  the  Saxon,  the  Bavarian,  and  the 
Polish—ench  possessing  one  vote.     A  strong  party  had 
grown  up  among  the  Bohemians,  which  held  in  the  main 
the  doctrines  of  the  Englishman,  IVycliJ'e.     The  leader  of 
this  party  was  John  Huss,  a  professor  of  philosophy.     As 
the  other  nations  were  opposed  to  the  Wyclifiite  doctrine, 
there    were    constant    disputes    between    them    and    the 
Bohemians.     In   1409,  Wenceslaus,  who  was  still  King  of 
Bohemia,  changed  the  constitution  of  the  University,  giving 
three  votes  to  the  Bohemian  nation  and  only  one  to  the 
others.     The  German  students  and  professors  felt  insulted 
by  this,  and  at  once  left  Prague,  going  for  the  most  part  to 
the  University  recently  founded  at  Leipzig.    The  reforming 
party  was   now   all-powerful,  and   Huss,   who  was    mac' 
Rector  of  the   University,   began   to  speak  very   sJa 
against  the  abuses  of  the  Church.      He  thu^ 
hatred  of  the  clergy,  and  at  last  the  Pope 


no 


THE  LUXEMBURG  EMPERORS, 


[chap. 


him,  and  placed  Prague  under  the  interdict  so  long  as  if 
should  shelter  him.  When  the  Council  of  Constanz  met, 
Huss  was  summoned  to  appear  before  it.  The  Council 
thought  his  doctrines  dangerous  both  to  Church  and  State, 
and  soon  after  he  reached  Constanz  caused  him  to  be 
seized  and  thrown  into  prison.  On  July  6,  141 5,  he  was 
burned.  He  had  received  a  safe-conduct  from  the  King , 
but  Sigmund  was  weak  or  base  enough  to  let  the  Council 
persuade  him  that  he  ought  not  to  keep  his  word  with  a 
heretic.  The  movement  in  Bohemia  displeased  Sigmund, 
not  only  because  he  thought  it  heretical,  but  because  it  was 
arousing  among  the  Bohemians  a  national  life  which  must, 
sooner  or  later,  tend  to  separate  them  from  the  Empire.  In 
14 1 6,  Jerome  of  Prague,  who  had  first  brought  Wycliffe's 
writings  to  Prague,  was  also  burned  in  Constanz. 

13.  The  Hussite  War.— The  burning  of  Huss  and  Jerome 
of  Prague  caused  a  ver>'  bitter  feeling  in  Bohemia,  and  this 
was  increased  by  further  attempts  made  by  the  Council  of 
Constanz  and  by  Pope  Martin  V.  to  put  down  the  heretics. 
When  Wenceslaus  died  in  1419,  Sigmund  claimed  to  be 
King  of  Bohemia.  If  he  had  tried  to  conciliate  the  more 
moderate  Hussites  he  might  have  gained  the  crown  at  once  ; 
but,  instead  of  doing  so,  he  caused  a  crusade  to  be  preached 
against  all  Huss's  followers,  and  thus  united  them  against 
him.  The  war  which  followed  was  a  very  fierce  one,  and 
lasted  fifteen  years.  The  Hussites  were  at  first  led  by  John 
Zisca^  one  of  the  greatest  generals  that  ever  lived.  He 
became  blind  ;  but  his  followers  had  unbounded  trust  in 
him,  and  he  led  them  from  one  victory  to  another.  He 
died  in  1424.  After  his  death,  his  spirit  seemed  still  to 
^ong  the  Hussites,  for  they  not  only  defeated  army 
^v^ent  against  them,  but  invaded  and  laid  waste 
^around  Bohemia. 

icrVes  the    crown  of   Bohemia.      Hit 


xu]  SIGMUND  AND  THE  UTRAQUISTS, 


\i\ 


death.— The  Council  of  Base/ met  in  1431,  and  soon  began 
to  negotiate  with  the  Hussites.     The  latter  were  divided  mto 
two  parties— the  Calixtines  and  the  Taborites.     The  <  hief 
doctrine  of  the  Calixtines  (Kalyx,  a  cup)  was  that  laymen 
as  well  as  the  clergy  ought  to  receive  the  cup  in  the  com- 
munion.    The  Taborites  went  much  further  than  this,  and 
wished  to  remain  for  ever  separate  from  the  Church.     They 
received  their  name  from  a  hill  which  Zisca  had  made  his 
headquarters  and  had   strongly   fortified,  and   which   had 
been   called  Mount  Tabor.      In    1433  the  Calixtines,  also 
called   Utraquists,  came  to  an  agreement  with  the  Basel 
Council,  which  permitted  the  use  of  the  cup ;  and  returned 
to  the  Church.     The  Taborites  looked  on  this  as  treachery, 
and  turned  against  their  old  friends  ;  but  in  1434  they  were 
utterly  defeated  near  Prague.     Sigmund  then  confirmed  the 
agreement  made  between  the  Council  and  the  Utraquists, 
and  was   acknowledged    King  of  Bohemia.     He  did  not, 
however,  act  fairly,  for  when  he  came  to  Prague  he  tried  to 
put  down  the  Utraquists,  and  to  bring  back  the  Catholic 
worship.     He  died  in  1437.     In  1433  he  had  been  crowned 
Emperor. 

15.  Brandenburg  and  Sachsen- Wittenberg.— In  141 5,  in 
return  for  400,000  Hungarian  gulden,  Sigmund  gave  the 
Mark  oi  Bratidenburg  \x\  fief  to  Frederick,  Count  oi  Hohen- 
zollern.  From  this  time  the  house  of  Hohenzollern  always 
held  Brandenburg.  Sachsen-  Wittenberg  was  given  in  1423, 
also  in  return  for  money,  to  Frederick,  Margrave  oi  Meissen 
and  Landgrave  of  Thjiringia.  Both  princes  received  the 
b'lectorai  dignity  along  with  their  new  lands. 


CHAPTER  XIL 


EMPERORS  OF  THE  HOUSE  OF  AUSTRIA. 


Albert  of  Austria  elected;  his  firm  goz'ernment ;  his  death  (i) — 

Frederick  of  Styria  becomes  King  ;  supports  the  Pope  against  tht 

princes  (2) — Frederick  III.  crowned  Emperor ;  confirfns  to  the 

House  of  Austria  the  title  of  Archduke  {1) — the  Turk^  threaten 

Christendom  {4) — Ladislaus^  Albert  II.' s  son^  dies;  Frederick 

III.  receives  Lower  Austria  ;   George  Podiebrad  becovtes  King  of 

Bohemia,  and  Matthias  Corvinus  King  of  Hungary  (5) — Wars 

in  Germany  (6) — disturbances  in  Austria  (7) — Charles  the  Bola 

defeated  by  the  Eidgenossen  (8) — Maximilian^  Frederick  Ill's 

soHt  marries  Mary  of  Burgundy  (9) — wars  of  Frederick  III. 

and  Matthias  Corvinus  (10) — the  Swabian  Confederation  ;  death 

of  Frederick  III.  (11) — the  Teutonic  Order  has  to  give  up  the 

western  part  of  Prussia  to  the  King  of  Poland,  and  to  do  homage 

for  the  rest  (12) — character  and  power  of  Maximilian  I.  {13) 

— Marriage  of  Philips  son  of  Maximilian  /.,  with  the  Infanta 

jfoanna    (14) — a    perpetual  peace  proclaimed ;    the    Imperial 

Chamber  ;  the  common  penny  {1$)— foreign  wars  of  Maximilian 

I.  (16) — the  Turks  {\'J)—voar  of  Maximilian  I.  tvith  the  Swiss 

League  {\%)—war  of  the  Bavarian  succession  {19) — Maximilian 

I.   takes  the  titles  of  '■^Emperor  Elect''    ami    ^^ King  of  Ger- 

viany"    (20) — Germany  divided  into    Circles   (21) — the  Aulic 

Council  (22) — death  of  Maximilian   I.    (23) — the  end  of  the 

Middle  Ages   {2^— position   of  the   German    Kings   (25) — the 

princes  ;  the  Provincial  States  (26) — the  free  Imperial  cities  (27) 

tkt  Diet  (28)—/-^  Roman  Law  in  Germany  (29)—  Universitia 


[CH.  XII.J 


ALBERT  IL 


"3 


of  Girmany  ;  tJie  Revival  of  learning  (30) — the  Literature  oj 
the  people  (31). 


1.  Albert  II. — After  Sigmund  died,  his  son-in-law,  Albert^ 
Duke  of  Austria,  was  made  King  of  Bohemia  and  of  Hun- 
gary ;  and  in  1438  he  was  chosen  King  of  the  Romans. 
From  this  time  the  Imperial  crown  was  held  without  inter- 
ruption by  the  house  of  Austria  till  the  male  line  died  out 
At  this  time  the  affairs  of  the  Church  were  the  chief  subject 
of  interest  to  Germany  as  well  as  to  the  rest  of  Europe. 
The  Council  of  Basel  had  quarrelled  with  Pope  Eugenius 
/K,  who  was  supported  by  all  who  opposed  the  reformation 
of  the  Church.  At  first  Germany  took  neither  side  in  this 
quarrel ;  but  in  1439  Albert,  with  the  approval  of  the  Diet, 
accepted  the  reforming  decrees  of  the  Council,  and  thus 
recognized  its  authority.  If  these  decrees  had  been  carried 
out,  the  Church  might  have  been  spared  much  future 
humiliation.  Albert  acted  as  wisely  in  civil  as  in  ecclesiastical 
matters,  so  that  his  reign  promised  to  be  a  very  prosperous 
one  ;  but  he  suddenly  died,  after  a  campaign  against  the 
Turks,  in  1439. 

2.  Frederick  III. — Albert  II.  was  succeeded  on  the  Ger- 
man throne  by  Frederick.,  Duke  of  Styria.  Frederick 
reigned  longer  than  any  German  King  either  before  or  after 
his  time,  but  did  nothing  great.  He  was  a  grave  and 
thoughtful  man,  but  he  lacked  energy,  and  was  too  poor 
to  do  much  without  the  help  of  the  States,  which  were  now 
almost  always  unwilling  to  interfere  in  matters  not  directly 
affecting  themselves.  Germany  still  supported  the  Council 
of  Basel  ;  but  Frederick  sided  with  the  Pope.  In  1445 
Eugjpnius  IV.  deposed  the  Archbishops  of  K'dln  and  Trier. 
The  Electors  felt  themselves  wronged  by  this  insult  to  two  of 
their  number,  and,  meeting  at  Frankfurt^  made  various  de- 
mandi  on  the  Pope,  requiring,  among  other  things,  that  he 

H 


114 


EMPERORS  OF  THE  HOUSE  OF  A  US  TRTA,    [chap. 


should    reco-nize    the    decrees    of    Constanz    and   Basel. 
Fredericl:  1 1 L,  with  the  help  of  his  secretary,  ^neas  Sylvius, 
who  afterwards  became  Pope,  not  only  got  the  Electors  to 
moderate  their  demands,  but  in  the  end  reconciled  them  to 
Eu-enius.      He  after^vards  concluded  with  Nicolas  V.  the 
Concordat  of  Vienna,  by  which  the  Pope  received  back 
almost  all  the  rights  which  the  Basel  Council  had  taken 
from  him.     To  this  Concordat  the  assent  of  the  pnnces  one 
after  the  other,  was  afterwards  obtained.     By  his  friendship 
with  the  Pope  Frederick  hoped  to  gain  back  some  of  the  lost 
ri-hts  of  the  German  Kings.      He  thus  turned  against  the 
princes  the  very  weapon  with  which  they  had  in  former 
times  attacked  the  royal  and  Imperial  authority.    But  it  was 
now  too  late  to  take  this   course.      An   alliance  between 
the  Pope  and  the  German  King  would  once  have  done  great 
things  for   both  ;    but   they  had   ciuarrelled    so  long,   and 
weakened  each   other  so  thoroughly,  that  their  friendship 
was  now  of  very  little  use  to  either. 

3  Frederick  III.  and  the  House  of  Austria.-Frederick 
was  crowned  Emperor  at  Rome  in  1452.  He  was  the  last 
Emperor  crowned  at  Rome,  and  the  last  but  one  who 
received  the  Imperial  crown  from  a  Pope.  When  he 
became  Emperor  he  confirmed  to  the  House  of  Austria  the 
title  of  Archduke,  which  had  been  first  taken  by  Duke 
Rudolf  in  the  time  of  the  Emperor  Charles  IV.  He  also 
granted  privileges  to  his  family  which  raised  it  above  all 
other  princely  houses  except  those  of  the  Electors. 

4.  The  Turks.— A  great  danger  at  this  time  threatened 
Germany.  This  was  the  advance  of  the  Turks,  who  took 
Constantinople  in  1453,  and  destroyed  the  Eastern  Empire. 
Frederick  wished  to  join  the  Pope  in  keeping  back  this 
powerful  enemy ;  but  the  States  would  not  support  him, 
partly  from  indifference  to  what  affected  the  general  weal, 
and  partly  because  they  feared  that  if  they  should  contribute 


XII.] 


WARS  IN  GERMANY. 


"5 


men  and  money  the  Pope  and  the  Emperor  would  use  these 
for  their  private  ends.  The  defence  of  Christendom  by  land 
was  thus  left  chiefly  to  the  Poles  and  the  Hungarians.  In 
1456  the  Turks  besieged  Belgrade;  but  they  were  driven 
back  with  great  loss  by  the  Hungarians,  who  were  led  by 
their  regent,  John  Huniades. 

5.  Death  of  Ladislaus,  son  of  Albert  II. — Ladislaus,  the 
posthumous  son  of  Albert  II.,  had  succeeded  his  father  as 
Duke  of  Austria  and  as  King  of  Hungary  and  Bohemia.  He 
died  in  1457.  The  Emperor  then  claimed,  as  head  of  his 
house,  the  whole  of  Austria  ;  but  he  had  to  give  up  Upper 
Austria  to  his  brother  Albert,  and  to  content  himself  with 
Lower  Austria.  He  next  tried  to  obtain  the  Bohemian  and 
Hungarian  crowns.  The  Bohemians,  however,  elected 
George  Podiebrad,  a  Utraquist  nobleman,  who  had  already 
acted  as  regent ;  and  MatiJiias  Corvinus,  son  of  yohtt 
Huniades,  was  made  King  of  Hungary.  In  the  end 
Frederick  had  to  recognise  both  of  these  Kings. 

6.  Wars  in  Germany. — The  reign  of  Frederick  was  a  time 
of  great  confusion  in  Germany,  for  when  he  interfered  in  its 
affairs  he  had  no  power  to  enforce  his  decrees.  A  war, 
called  the  Margraves'  War,  went  on  for  seven  years,  from 
1449,  between  Albert,  Margrave  of  Brandenburg,  and  the 
city  of  Niirnberg.  Many  princes  joined  Albert ;  and 
Niirnberg  was  supported  by  the  Eidgenossen  and  more 
than  seventy  cities.  At  last,  in  1456,  the  war  was  ended  by 
the  defeat  of  Albert ;  but  in  the  end  the  city  had  to  pay  to 
him  a  large  sum.  Another  war  was  carried  on  against 
Frederick  of  the  RJunish  Palatinate.  He  took  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Maitiz,  when  deposed  by  the  Pope,  under  his 
protection.  As  usual,  the  Emperor  sided  with  the  Pope, 
and  put  Frederick  to  the  ban  of  the  Empire.  Albert  of 
Brandenburg,  and  Ulrich,  Count  of  WUrtemberg,  under, 
took  to  exjcute  the  Imperial  sentence ;  but,  in  1462,  both 


a 


/ 


ii6    EMPERORS  OF  THE  HOUSE  OF  AUSTRIA,    [chap. 

were  defeated,  Ulrich  by  Frederick  himself,  and  Albert  by 
Frederick's  ally,  Lewis,  Duke  of  Bavaria.  Other  wars 
were  carried  on  which  did  much  harm  to  all  classes,  but 
especially  to  the  peasantry. 

7.  Disturbances  in  Austria.— Even  in  Lower  Austria  the 
Emperor  was  treated  with  very  little  respect.     In  1462  the 
people  of  Vienna  rebelled  against  him,  and  besieged  him  in 
the  citadel,  in  which  he  had  taken  refuge  with  the  Empress 
and   their  young   son   Maximilian.       Fredericks  brother 
Albert  took  part  with  Vienna.      The   Emperor  in    vain 
appealed  to  the  States  to  help  him  ;   but  at  last  George 
Podiebrad,  King  of  Bohemia,  sent  an  army  to  his  relief. 
In  1462  he  was  compelled  to  give  up  Lower  Austria,  with 
Vienna,  for  eight  years  to  his  brother.     Albert,  however, 
made  himself  as  unpopular  as  the  Emperor  had  done  ;  and 
he  died  in  1463.     His  death  made  Frederick  master  of  all 
the  Austrian  lands  except  Tyrol. 

8.  Charies  the  Bold  and  the  Eidgenossen.— The  wealthiest 
prince  of  this  time  was  Charles  the  Bold,  Duke  of  Burgundy. 
Besides  the  Duchy  of  Burgundy,  he  held  the  Free  County  of 
Burgundy   and  greater   part  of  the  Low   Countries.     He 
wished  to  restore  the  old  Lotharingia  by  founding  a  great 
border  kingdom,  reaching  from  the  Mediterranean  to  the 
North  Sea,  between  France  and  Germany.      In   1476  he 
made  war  on  the  Eidgenossen,  whom  Lewis  XL  of  France 
had  stirred  up  against  him.     The  Eidgenossen  never  fought 
more  bravely  than  in  this  war,  for  they  defeated  Charles  in 
two  great  battles,  first  at  Granson  and  afterwards  at  Moral. 
In  1477  they  helped  Reni,  Duke  of  Lorraine,  to  win  the 
battle  of  Nancy,  in  which  Charies  was  killed.     These  great 
victories  did  much  to  draw  the  Eidgenossen,  who  now  began 
to  be  called  Swiss,  closer  together,  and  to  give  them  a 
feeling  of  national  Ufa.     But  they  still  remained  part  of  Uic 
Empire. 


xn.\  FREDERICK  III.  AND  MATTHIAS  COR  VINUS,  117 


9.  Marriage  of  Maximilian  with  Mary  of  Burgundy. — 
There  had  been  negotiations  between  the  Emperor  Frederick 
and  Charles  the  Bold  for  the  marriage  of  Mary,  Charles's 
daughter,  with  Maxivnlian,  Frederick's  son  ;  but  some  mis- 
understanding had  arisen,  and  the  negotiations  were  broken 
off.  When  Charles  died,  Mary  gave  her  hand  of  her  own 
will  to  Maximilian.  Through  this  marriage  the  house  of 
Austria  received  the  Low  Countries  and  the  Free  Coiinty  of 
Burgundy.  The  Duchy  of  Burgundy  had  been  seized  by 
the  French  King  when  Charles  the  Bold  died  ;  and  it  was 
not  again  given  up.  Mary  died  in  1482,  leaving  a  son  and 
daughter,  Philip  and  Margaret. 

10.  Frederick  III.  and  Matthias  Corvinus. — George  Podie- 
brad 6.\cd  in  147 1.  The  Emperor  again  tried  to  gain  the 
crown  of  Bohemia ;  but  the  Bohemian  States  elected 
Wladislaus,  son  of  Casimir  IV.,  King  of  Poland.  Frederick 
had  been  won  over  by  Pope  Paul  II.  against  Podiebrad, 
and  had  stirred  up  Matthias  Connnus,  King  of  Hungary, 
to  make  war  on  Bohemia.  But  Frederick  was  jealous  of 
the  great  power  of  Matthias,  and  now  not  only  left  him,  but 
supported  Wladislaus  against  him,  and  excited  rebellion 
in  Hungary,  hoping  in  the  end  to  gain  the  Hungarian 
crown  for  himself  and  his  house.  Matthias  twice  made 
war  on  Austria,  and  the  second  time  (1485)  not  only  overran 
the  Archduchy,  but  took  Vienna.  At  this  time  the  Emperor, 
nominally  the  greatest  of  earthly  rulers,  had  to  fly  for  his 
life,  and  was  glad  to  find  shelter  in  the  monasteries  and 
towns  he  passed.  Matthias  kept  possession  of  Austria  till  his 
death  in  1490.  Frederick  then  recovered  his  lands,  and 
tried  to  get  either  himself  or  his  son  Maximilian  elected 
King  of  Hungary.  The  Hungarian  States,  however,  were 
jealous  of  the  house  of  Austria,  and  chose  as  their  King 
Wladislaus,  King  of  Bohemia. 

11.  The  Swabian  Confederation.  Death  of  Frederick  HI, 


I 


li8    EMPERORS  OF  THE  HOUSE  Of  AUSTRIA.    [ciiAP. 


—There  had  been  so  many  private  wars  in  Frederick's  time 
that  the  nation  was  longing  for  peace.  At  a  Diet  held  in 
i486,  therefore,  a  public  peace  was  proclaimed  for  ten 
years.  Two  years  afterwards,  partly  through  the  efforts  of 
Frederick,  a  great  new  Confederation  was  formed  in  Swabia. 
It  took  in  many  princes,  nobles,  and  cities.  About  this 
time  the  Duke  of  Bavaria  had  seized  Regensburg,  and  was 
threatening  other  free  towns.  The  Confederation  soon 
compelled  him  to  submit  ;  and  it  gradually  became  so 
powerful  that  it  did  more  than  could  have  been  done  by 
either  the  Emperor  or  the  Diet  to  keep  the  peace  in  South 
Germany.  Frederick  died  in  1493,  having  reigned  upwards 
of  fifty-three  years.  For  some  time  he  had  given  up  the 
government,  both  of  Austria  and  Germany,  to  his  son, 
Maximilian,  who  had  been  elected  King  of  the  Romans  in 

i486. 

12.  Prussia  and  the  Teutonic  Order.— For  a  long  time 
Prussia  flourished  under  the  Teutonic  knights.  But  the 
Order  gradually  got  corrupted  by  prosperity,  and  began  to 
i-ule  badly.  In  the  beginning  of  the  fifteenth  century  it 
was  defeated  and  humbled  by  the  Polish  king,  Jagellon. 
In  1454,  the  towns  and  nobles  rebelled  against  the  Order, 
and  called  in  Casimir  IV.,  King  of  Poland,  to  their  help. 
A  war  followed  which  did  not  end  till  1466.  The  Order 
had  then,  in  the  Peace  of  Thorn,  to  give  up  the  western  part 
of  Prussia  to  Casimir,  and  to  do  homage  for  the  eastern, 
which  it  was  allowed  to  keep. 

13.  Maximilian  \.— Maximilian  I.  was  a  very  different 
man  from  his  father.  He  was  eager  and  restless,  fond  of 
war  and  adventure,  and  always  forming  some  scheme  or 
other  for  adding  to  his  own  power.  Even  if  he  had  not 
been  King  of  the  Romans,  he  would  have  been  a  powerful 
prince.  He  was,  in  his  own  right.  Archduke  of  Austria, 
Duke   of   Styria,   Carnthia,   and  Camiola,  and    Count   of 


XII.] 


THE  DIET  OF  WORMS,  149S' 


119 


Tyrol-  and  he  had  lands  in  Swabia  and  Elsass.  As 
guardian  to  his  son  Philip,  he  also  ruled  the  Low  Countries 
and  the  County  of  Burgundy. 

14.  Mairiage  of  Philip  with  the  Infanta  Joanna.— The 
year  after  he  succeeded  to  the  throne,  Maximilian  gave  up 
the  government  of  the  Low  Countries  to  his  son  Philip. 
Philip  afterwards  married  Joanna,  daughter  of  Ferdinand 
and  Isabella,  who  had  united  by  their  marriage  the  king- 
doms of  Aragon  and  Castile.  This  marriage  led  to  very 
important  results.  Philip  and  Joanna  had  two  sons,  Charles 
ana  Ferdinand.  These  sons  afterwards  became  Emperors, 
one  after  the  other  ;  and  from  them  sprang  the  Austrian 
and  Spanish  branches  of  the  House  of  Habsburg. 

15.  The  Diet  of  Worms,  1495— ^^  i494,  Charles  VIII. 
of  France  made  his  famous  expedition  into  Italy.     Maxi- 
milian  was  eager  to  oppose  him,  and  to  assert  the  old  Im- 
perial rights  over  the  southern  kingdom.     As  he  could  do 
very  little  without  the  help  of  the  States,  he  summoned  a 
Diet  at  Won>i5  in  I495-     This  was  one  of  the  most  famous 
of  all  the  Diets.      All  good  men  in   Germany  now  were 
sincerely  anxious  that  the  custom  of  private  warfare  should 
be   put    down.      At  this   Diet,    a  perpetual  public  peace 
^s2.s  proclaimed,  and  the  right  of  private  feuds  declared  at 
an  end.     The  States  then  urged  Maximilian  to  set  up  some 
court  by  which  disputes  might  be  finally  settled,  so  that 
there  should  be  no  excuse  for  carrying  on  private  war. 
Maximilian  was  very  unwilling  to  give  up  any  of  his  royal 
rights  ;  but  at  last,  in  the  hope  that  by  yielding  he  might 
gain  the  support  of  the  States  against  the  French,  he  agreed 
to  set  up  a  court  of  appeal  called  the  Imperial  Chamber. 
This  court  was  to  be  made  up  of  2.  judge,  ox  president,  and 
sixteen  assessors.     The  judge  was  to  be  appointed  by  the 
Kino- .  but  the  assessors  were  to  be  named  by  the  States, 
and'only  to  be  confirmed  by  the  King.     If  any  one  should 


I20    EMPERORS  OF  THE  HOUSE  OF  AUSTRIA,    [chap. 


refuse  to  submit  to  a  decision  of  the  court,  it  was  to  have 
the  power  of  putting  him  to  the  ban  of  the  Empire.  A  tax 
called  the  common  penny ^  to  be  raised  in  all  the  States  of 
Germany,  was  to  be  partly  devoted  to  the  support  of  the 
tribunal.  Maximilian  never  hked  the  court,  and  did  every- 
thing,^ he  could  to  make  it  fail ;  but  it  went  on  after  his  time 
until  the  Empire  was  broken  up.  It  had  usually,  however, 
too  little  power,  and  was  too  slow  and  formal  in  its  pro- 
ceedings to  be  very  useful. 

1 6.  Foreign  Wars  of  Maximilian  I. — Maximilian  took 
part  in  many  wars  in  which  Germany  was  not  directly 
mixed  up.  They  had  almost  all  to  do  with  Italy,  which 
several  French  kings,  one  after  the  other,  and  Ferdinand  of 
Spain,  tried  hard  at  this  time  to  conquer.  In  1508  Maxi- 
milian joined  the  League  of  Cambray^  formed  for  the 
purpose  of  breaking  up  the  Venetian  Republic.  He  after- 
wards helped  the  so-called  Holy  League  against  Lewis  XII. 
of  France.  In  almost  all  his  foreign  wars  Maximilian  was 
very  unsuccessful.  The  chief  cause  of  this  was  his  want  of 
money.  He  often  tried  to  get  the  States  to  help  him  ;  but 
they  usually  insisted  that  what  Germany  really  needed  was 
peace  and  order,  not  war.  He  had  therefore  to  tiiist 
chiefly  to  his  hereditary  possessions.  Although  these  were 
very  great,  they  did  not  enable  him  to  fight  on  equal  terms 
with  Kings  like  Lewis  XII.,  or  Ferdinand,  especially  as  he 
was  lavish  in  his  habits,  and  often  wasted  great  sums  of 
money  in  foolish  display.  His  poverty  led  him  sometimes 
to  act  in  a  way  that  was  unworthy  of  his  great  position.  At 
the  siege  of  Terottenne  he  served  under  Henry  VIII.  of 
Eni'.land  for  the  pay  of  100  crowns  a-day. 

r;.  The  Turks.— In  the  latter  part  of  Frederick  III.'s 
reign,  the  Turks  had,  over  and  over  again,  entered  Car- 
inthia,  Carniola,  and  Styria,  and  had  done  much  harm. 
Maximilian  always  professed  to  be  anxious  to  lead  a  crusadf 


XII.]       WAR  OF  THE  BAVARIAN  SUCCESSION.       121 


against  them,  in  order  to  drive  them  altogether  from 
Europe ;  but  the  States,  distrusting  both  him  and  the 
Pope,  who  supported  him,  refused  to  help  him,  so  that  his 
schemes  came  to  nothing.  During  his  reign,  however,  the 
Turks  did  not  invade  any  of  the  lands  held  by  the  House  of 
Austria. 

18.  Maximilian  I.  and  the  Swiss  League. — In  1499, 
Maximilian  made  war  on  the  Swiss  League^  as  we  may 
now  call  the  League  of  the  Eidgenossen^  partly  because  it 
would  not  acknowledge  the  Imperial  Chamber,  but  chiefly 
because  it  helped  the  French  in  their  attempt  to  conquer 
Italy.  In  this,  as  in  his  other  wars,  the  States  supported 
Maximilian  very  unwillingly ;  and  his  own  troops  were 
defeated  at  Dornach.  He  was  therefore  obliged  to  con- 
clude a  peace,  by  which  the  members  of  the  Confederation 
were  declared  free  from  Imperial  taxation  and  the  juris- 
diction of  the  Imperial  Chamber.  The  League  was  still 
nominally  part  of  the  Empire  for  about  a  century  and  a 
half;  but  from  this  time  it  was  practically  independent 

19.  War  of  the  Bavarian  succession. — The  house .  of 
Bavaria  was  still  divided  into  two  lines,  the  Palatine  and 
the  Bavarian;  and  the  latter  took  in  the  two  branches  of 
Landshut  and  Munich.  When  George^  Duke  of  Bavaria- 
Landshut,  died,  in  1503,  the  Dukes  of  Bavaria-Munich 
claimed  to  be  his  lawful  heirs  ;  but  he  had  left  his  lands  to 
his  daughter,  Elisabeth^  and  her  husband,  Rupert^  and  they 
were  supported  by  the  Rhenish  Palsgrave,  Rupert's  father. 
The  matter  came  before  the  Imperial  Chamber,  but  Rupert 
and  his  father  would  not  accept  its  decision.  Maximilian 
made  war  on  them  ;  and  he  was  joined  by  the  S\\  abiar. 
League  and  some  powerful  princes.  This  was  the 
most  successful  of  all  Maximilian's  wars.  lie  defeated 
the  forces  of  the  enemy,  and  in  the  end  not  only  got 
the   dispute    settled    according   to    his    wish,    but    added 


122    EMrERORS  OF  THE  HOUSE  OF  AUCiTRlA.    [chap. 


various  Bavarian  towns  and  lands  to  his  hereditary  pos- 
sessions. 

20.  Maximilian  I.  takes  the  titles  of  *' Emperor  Elect" 
and  "King  of  Germany."— In  1508,  Maximilian  was  about 
to  march  to  Rome  to  be  crowned  Emperor  ;  but  the  Vene 
tians  refused  to  let  him  pass  through  their  territor>'.  With 
the  sanction  of  Pope  Julius  II.,  therefore,  he  took  the  title 
of  "Emperor  Elect"  without  being  crowned  Emperor  at  all. 
He  also  added  to  his  other  titles  that  of  "  King  of  or  in 
Germany"— a  title  that  does  not  occur  before  his  time. 

21.  Germany  divided  into  Circles.— Albert  II.  had  tried 
to  divide  Gcmiany  into  Circles,  that  he  might  be  the  better 
able  to  put  down  private  war ;  but  he  had  not  lived  long 
enough  to  carry-  out  his  plan.  In  Maximilian's  time  it  was 
again  taken  up;  and,  in  1501,  the  Circles  of  Bcwaria, 
Swabia,  Fraticonta,  the  Upper  Rhine,  IVesiphalia,  and 
Lower  Saxotty,  were  formed.  In  1 512,  at  a  Diet  in  AW//, 
It  was  agreed  that  the  hereditary  dominions  of  Maximilian 
and  the  Electoral  princes,  which  had  hitherto  been  left  out, 
should  also  be  divided  into  Circles.  Thus  the  four  ncv' 
Circles  of  Austria,  Burgundy,  the  Lower  Rhine,  and  Upper 
Saxony,  were  added  to  those  already  existing.  Each  ol 
these  ten  Circles  had  its  own  States,  presided  over  by  one 
or  more  Directors.  The  duty  of  the  Government  of  a  Circle 
was  to  carry  out  the  decisions  of  the  Imperial  Chamber,  and 
generally  to  maintain  order.  It  was  some  years  before  the 
Circles  were  thoroughly  formed.  They  never  did  so  much 
as  many  hoped  they  might  do  ;  but  they  were  a  great 
advance  on  the  disorder  of  the  time  of  Frederick  III. 

22.  The  Aulic  Council.— Maximilian  ruled  his  hereditary 
lands  with  great  vigour.  Amongst  other  things  he  set  up 
a  tribunal  which  was  to  receive  appeals  from  lower  courts. 
This  tribunal  was  afterwards  called  the  Aulic  Council,  and 
became  a  court  of  appeal  for  the  whoJs  of  Germany.     It 


XII.] 


THE  END  OF  THE  MIDDLE  AGES, 


123 


lasted,  like  the  Imperial  Chamber,  till  the  Empire  broke  up  ; 
but,  as  its  judges  were  appointed  by  the  Emperor,  it  never 
thoroughly  gained  the  confidence  of  the  country. 

23.  Death  of  Maximilian  I. — Maximilian  went  on  almost 
till  his  death  forming  great  schemes,  which  he  was  never  able 
to  fulfil.  He  seems  at  one  time  even  to  have  had  the  idea 
of  getting  himself  elected  Pope.  At  his  very  last  Diet  held 
m  Augsburg '^xi  1518,  he  did  everything  he  could  to  rouse 
the  States  tc  join  him  in  a  crusade  against  the  Turks.  He 
also  tried,  but  in  vain,  to  get  his  grandson,  Charles,  elected 
King  of  the  Romans.  While  on  his  way  home  from  the 
Diet  of  Augsburg,  Maximilian  died  in  15 19,  at  Wels,  in 
Upper  Austria. 

24.  The  end  of  the  Middle  Ages. — The  Middle  Ages  may 
now  be  said  to  have  nearly  come  to  an  end  in  Germany. 
The  Empire  was  no  longer  looked  on  as  a  universal  mon- 
archy ;  and,  as  we  shall  see,  the  Church  was  soon  to  be 
broken  up  by  the  great  movement  of  the  Reformation. 
Some  of  the  chief  features  oi  feudalism  had  also  begun  to 
disappear.  The  forms  of  feudalism  were  still,  to  some  extent, 
kept  up  ;  but  feudal  lords  no  longer  received  direct  service 
in  war  from  their  vassals  in  return  for  their  lands.  Princes 
now  for  the  most  part  made  war  by  means  of  hired  troops. 
This  change  was  brought  about  by  the  discovery  of  gun- 
powder, which  made  a  body  of  common  men  on  foot  more 
than  a  match  for  an  equal  number  of  even  the  bravest 
knights  on  horseback  armed  in  the  old  way.  The  demand 
for  fighting  men  led  many  to  give  themselves  up  to  a  life  of 
war.  Those  who  did  so  were  called  ^^  Landskfiechte,^^  a 
word  first  applied  to  mercenaries  from  the  lowlands  of 
Austria  as  opposed  to  those  of  Switzerland.  The  Lands- 
knechte  served  under  those  princes  who  paid  them  best,  no 
matter  what  might  be  the  cause  for  which  they  had  to  fight. 
They  made  good  soldiers,  but  were  usually  men  of  wild 


124     EMPERORS  OF  THE  HOUSE  OF  AUSTKTA.  [chap. 


XII.] 


THE  FREE  IMPERIAL  CITIES, 


125 


lives,  and  when  not  in  active  service  were  a  cause  of  great 
annoyance  to  honest  people  both  in  the  towns  and  in  the 
country. 

25.  Position  of  the  German  Kings.— The  German  King  had 
now  no  certain  revenue  as  King,  and  he  exercised  very  Httle 
real  power  in  Germany.  Since  the  Interregnum  the  princes 
had  greatly  strengthened  the  independence  whose  foundation 
they  had  laid  at  that  time  and  in  the  troubled  reigns  thai 
had  gone  before  it  from  the  days  of  Henry  IV,  Many  Im- 
perial cities  had  also  become/zv^.  Nevertheless  the  German 
Kings  took  a  far  higher  place  in  Europe  after  the  time  of 
Maximilian  I.  then  they  had  done  for  a  very  long  time  before. 
This  was  not  because  they  were  German  Kings  or  Emperors, 
but  because  they  were  great  princes  altogether  apart  from 
their  royal  and  Imperial  position.  It  was  not  always  good 
fpr  Germany  that  the  crown  was  held  by  princes  so  powerful 
in  their  own  right,  for  the  Austrian  Emperors  as  a  rule  tried 
to  use  their  position  as  a  means  of  adding  to  the  greatness 
of  their  house.  Above  all,  they  tried  to  drag  Germany  into 
wars  waged  by  Austria  against  other  countries,  but  with 
which  the  kingdom  of  Germany  had  really  little  or  nothing 
to  do. 

26.  The  princes.  The  provincial  States.— Although  the 
princes  owed  only  a  nominal  allegiance  to  the  King,  they 
were  not  usually  altogether  absolute  rulers,  for  in  almost 
every  principality  there  were  now  States  holding  the  same 
relation  to  the  prince  that  the  Diet  held  to  the  King.  The 
States  of  a  principality  were  made  up  of  the  vassals  of  the 
prince,  and  of  representatives  from  its  free  cities.  The  prince 
had  to  get  the  approval  of  his  States  before  he  could  lay  on 
taxes  ;  and  in  some  cases  he  had  even  to  give  an  account 
of  the  way  in  which  he  spent  public  money.  The  nc  bles 
for  the  most  part  refused  to  pay  taxes,  on  the  plea  ti.at  it 
was  service  in  war,  not  money,  they  owed  their  loid  for 


their  lands.  The  burden  thus  fell  chiefly  on  those  who 
held  allodial  lands,  on  the  citizens  of  towns,  and  on  the 
peasantry.  The  latter  class  had  no  part  in  the  provincial 
Diets,  and  were  usually  treated  with  great  harshness.  The 
tyranny  of  their  lords  roused  deep  discontent  in  the  minds 
of  the  peasants  ;  and  more  than  once  during  Maximilian's 
reign  they  formed  secret  Leagues  in  different  parts  of  the 
country,  which  had  to  be  put  down  by  force. 

27.  The  Free  Imperial  Cities.— The  free  Imperial  cities 
now  held  a  very  high  place  in  Germany.  They  had  become 
rich  and  powerful,  and  could  hold  their  own  against  the 
greatest  princes.  The  Ha?isa  was  about  this  time  at  the 
height  of  its  fome.  Within  the  cities  themselves  contests 
had  long  been  going  on  between  the  old  families,  who 
formed  a  sort  of  civil  aristocracy,  and  were  called  Patricians, 
and  the  Gilds.  The  Gilds  had  not  only  won  for  themselves 
a  share  in  the  government  in  almost  all  cities,  but  had  in 
very  many  got  the  upper  hand,  and  made  the  government 
thoroughly  democratic. 

28.  The  Diet— The  Diet  was  now  made  up  of  three 
Colleges— ihQ  Electors,  the  princes,  and  the  representatives 
of  free  Imperial  cities.  It  was  still  nominally  a  national 
council ;  but  in  reality  it  did  very  little.  The  princes  and 
free  Imperial  cities  were  now  at  all  times  too  jealous  of  each 
other  and  of  the  Emperor  to  do  much  for  the  common 
good. 

29.  The  Roman  law  in  Germany. — A  great  change 
had  taken  place  in  Germany  in  the  administration  of 
justice.  During  the  greater  part  of  the  Middle  Ages,  as  in 
earlier  times,  justice  was  administered  in  accordance  with 
old  usages.  If  the  sovereign  had  remained  a  King  and 
nothing  more,  these  usages  would  gradually  have  given  rise 
to  a  body  of  German  law  ;  but,  as  he  was  Roman  Emperor 
as  well  as  King,  his  subjects  came  to  believe  that  they  were 


\ 


126    EMPERORS  OF  THE  HOUSE  OF  AUSTRIA,    [chap. 


bound  by  Roman  law.  Thus  the  Roman  law  gradi.ally 
came  into  use,  first  in  the  free  Imperial  cities,  and  afterwards 
in  the  tribunals  of  princes.  From  1495  the  Imperial 
Chamber  was  to  judge  according  to  the  law  of  the  Empire 
and  written  {i.e.  Roman)  law.  The  Emperors  did  everything 
they  could  to  encourage  its  use,  for  it  gave  them  great 
power.  Without  doing  away  with  the  feudal  law  o^ 
the  land,  it  was  now  appealed  to  in  the  greater  part  of 
Germany. 

30.  Universities  of  Germany.  The  Revival  of  Learning. 
—The  example  of  Charles  /K,  in  founding  the  University 
of  Prague^  had  soon  been  followed  by  a  number  of  princes 
in  Germany.  Universities  were  founded  in  the  fourteenth 
century  in  Vienna^  Heidelberg^  Kobi^  and  Erfurt;  and,  in 
the  fifteenth,  in  Rostock^  Greifswald^  Tubingen^  Leipzig^ 
and  other  towns.  For  a  long  time  the  chief  studies  at  the 
universities  were  Theology  and  the  Scholastic  Philosophy  ; 
but  towards  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century  a  great  move- 
ment began,  called  the  Revival  of  Learnitig.  The  leading 
Latin  authors  had  always  been  more  or  less  studied  ;  but 
men  now  began  to  read  eagerly,  in  addition  to  these,  the 
Greek  classics,  and  to  think  more  freely  on  almost  all 
subjects.  Those  who  did  so  were  called  Humanists.  The 
movement  had  begun  in  Italy,  and  had  been  greatly  helped 
by  the  invention  of  printings  made  by  John  Guitenberg  of 
Mainz  in  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century.  Among  the 
greatest  of  the  Humanists  were  John  Reuchlin^  Dcsiderius 
Erasmus^  and  Ulrich  von  Hutten. 

31.  Literature  of  the  people. — It  was  not  only  at  the 
universities  that  a  new  spirit  of  inquiry  was  awakened 
about  this  time ;  the  people  also  began  to  think  and 
read  for  themselves.  Their  favourite  books  were  Tyll 
Eulenspiegelj  Reineke  FucJis^  and  the  Narrenschiff  of 
Sebastian  Brant.     The  two  first  were  written  originally  in 


f* 


XII.] 


LITERATURE  OF  THE  PEOPLE, 


127 


Low  Dutch  dialects.  All  of  them  were  more  or  less  satirical, 
and  attacked  with  especial  delight  the  vices  of  the  clergy. 
They  thus  gave  expression  to,  and  deepened,  a  popular 
feeling  which  had  long  been  preparing  the  way  for  the 
Reformation. 


A 


CHAPTER  XIII, 


CHARLES  V. — ^THE  REFORMATION 


Election  of  Charles  V,  (l)— Martin  Luther  protests  against  indul- 
gences;   beginning  of  the  Reformation   (2) — Luther  is  excom- 
municated; burns  the  Pope's  Bull  {^)— Charles   V.  sides  with 
the  Catholic  Church  {^)— Luther  before  the  Diet  of  Worms  (5)— 
formation  of  an  Administrative  Council ;    a  Matricula  (6) — 
wars  of  Charles    V.    and  Francis  /.    (7) — Luther's  doctrines 
accepted  by  princes  and  cities  ;  maniage  of  Luther ;  the  Diet  of 
Speyery  1326 ;  changes  in  the  Church  in  various  States  (8) — 
Franz  von  Sickingen  (9) — the  war  of  the  peasantry  (lo) — Albert 
of  Brandenburg  becomes  Duke  of  Prussia  (ll) — the  Archduke 
Ferdinand  becomes  King  of  Bohemia  and  Hungary  (l2) — tht 
Lutherans  receive  the  name  of  Protestants  (13) — the  Reformation 
in  Switzerland  {14) — the  Diet  of  Augsburg^  1S30  ;  the  Augsburg 
Confession;  decree  condemning  L.uther's  doctrines  (15) — t  lie  Arch' 
duke  Ferdinand  is  elected  King  of  the  Romans  (16) — the  Schmal- 
kaldic  League  {\*]) — tJie  Turks  threaten  Germany;  the  Religious 
Peace  of  Niirnberg  {iS)— foreign  wars  of  Charles  V.  {l^)— further 
progress  of  the  Reformation  (20) — Charles  V.  and  the  Protestants 
prepare  for  war  (21) — death  of  Luther  (22) — the  Schmalkaldic 
war;  triumph  of  the  Emperor  (23) — the  Interim  (24) — rebellion  of 
Maurice  of  Saxony  ;  Henry  LI.  of  France  seizes  German  lands  ; 
flight  of  Charles    V.  {i^)—the  Treaty  of  Passau  {26)— C/uirles 
V.  tries  to  take  the  territory  seized  by  Henry  II.  ^  but  fails  {27) — 
the  Religious  Peace  of  Augsburg  (28) — abdication  ami  death  of 
Charles    V.    {2<)) —political  effects    of  the  Reformation   {30) — 
Literature  and  Art  (31). 

I.    Election  of    Charles  V. — After   Maximilian's   death, 


[CH.  XIII.] 


MARTIN  LUTHER, 


129 


three  sovereigns  tried  to  obtain  the  crown — Hejtry  VIII.  of 
England,  Francis  I.  of  France,  and  Charles^  Maximilian's 
grandson.  Henry  soon  withdrew  ;  but  Francis  used  every 
means  in  his  power  to  win  over  the  Electors.  In  1519 
Charles  was  elected,  and  next  year  he  was  crowned  at 
Aachen.  Charles  was  already  King  of  Spain  and  of  the 
Two  Sicilies ;  and  he  held  the  Low  Countries  and  the 
County  of  Burgundy.  He  also  shared  with  his  brother 
Ferdinand  the  Archduchy  of  Austria  and  the  sister  Duchies. 
When,  therefore,  he  was  made  King  of  the  Romans,  he 
became  by  far  the  greatest  sovereign  who  had  reigned  in 
Europe  since  Charles  the  Great.  Fearing  his  great  power, 
the  Electors  made  him  sign  a  formal  deed  before  his  elec- 
tion, in  which  he  confirmed  the  States  in  all  their  rights 
and  privileges.  This  was  done  by  every  one  who  became 
King  of  the  Romans,  or  Emperor,  after  his  time. 

2.  Beginnings  of  the  Reformation.  Martin  Luther. — By 
this  time  the  great  movement  called  the  Reformation  may 
be  said  to  have  begun  in  Germany.  Pope  Leo  X.  had  sent 
messengers  into  Germany  to  raise  money  by  selling  indul- 
gences. By  these  indulgences  men  were  said  to  obtain 
remission  of  the  purgatorial  punishment  due  to  sins,  even 
sins  they  intended  to  commit  as  well  as  those  already 
committed.  John  Tetzel,  a  Dominican  friar,  distinguished 
himself  in  this  traffic.  Many  good  men  in  all  parts  of 
Germany  were  shocked  at  such  an  abuse  of  Papal  power. 
Amongst  these  was  Martin  Luther^  an  Augustinian  monk, 
and  professor  at  the  University  of  Wittenberg^  a  man  of  firm 
and  upright  character,  and  already  well  known  as  a  preacher. 
When  Tetzel  came  to  Saxony,  Luther  not  only  preached 
against  him,  but,  on  October  31,  1517,  affixed  to  the  door 
of  the  Castle  Church  at  Wittenberg  a  thesis,  made  up  of 
ninety-five  propositions,  in  which,  amojig  other  things,  he 
denied  that  the  Pope  had  the  power  to  forgive  sins.    At  this 


\ 


\ 


130         CHARLES  V.      THE  REFORMATION.        [chap. 


time  Germany  was  full  of  discontent  at  the  state  of  the 
Church.     Since  the  great  struggle  between  the  Empire  and 
the  Papacy,  there  had  always  been  a  party  in  Germany 
opposed  to  the  power  of  the  Popes.     This  party  had  been 
greatly  strengthened  by  the  fact  that  several  very  bad  men 
had  been  Popes  since  the  Council  of  Basel.     In  Germany 
itself  the  lives  of  many  of  the  clergy  caused  g:reat  scandal. 
The  prelates  were  usually  in  no  way  difterent  trom  ordinary 
secular  princes  ;  and  very  many  of  the  lower  clergy  were 
idle,  ignorant,  and  men  of  loose  morals.     Besides  all  this, 
the  general  stir  of  thought  brought  about  by  the  revival  of 
learning  and  other  causes  had  made  men  begin  to  doubt 
some  of  the  leading  doctrines  of  the  Church.     The  mini- 
strations of  the  clergy  seemed  cold  and  formal  to  those  who 
had  come   under   the   influence  of  the  Mystics;   and  the 
minds  of  the  people  had  long  been  agitated  by  the  discus- 
sions of  contending  sects.     Thus  at  the  very  time  when 
Luther  protested  against  indulgences,  many  were  ready  to 
join  heartily  in  an  attack  on  the  Church.     His  thesis  caused 
great  excitement ;  and  a  party  began  almost  at  once  to  form 
itself,  which  demanded  a  thorough   reformation   both   in 
doctrine  and  discipline.     This  party  grew  quickly,  especially 
in  the  cities.     The  opinions  of  Luther  Ixjcame  more  and 
more  decided,  and  he  spoke  them  out  clearly  and  fully,  and 
thus  helped  on  the  movement  he  had  in  a  sense  begun.    The 
Humanists  also  helped  on  the  Reformation,  for  they,  and 
above  all  Ulrich  von  Htitten,  warred  constantly  against 
the  Pope,  and  turned  against  the   clergy— especially  the 
regular  clergy — the  whole  force  of  their  wit  and  satire. 

3.  Luther  is  excommunicated,  and  burns  the  Pope's 
Bull.— At  first  Pope  Leo  paid  very  little  attention  to  what 
was  going  on  in  Germany;  but  in  1518  Luther  had  to 
appear  at  Augsburg  before  Cardinal  Cajetanus^  the  Papal 
legate   at   the  Augsburg  Diet.      The   Cardinal  demanded 


xm.]     CHARLES  V.  AND  THE  REFORMATION       13^ 

that  Luther  should  retract  his  errors  ;  but  the  latter  refused^ 
to  retract  anything  till  his  opinions  had  been  proved  from 
Scripture  to  be  untrue.  This  boldness  of  spirit  made 
Luther  still  more  popular,  and  added  to  the  numbers  oi 
those  who  were  calling  for  reform.  At  last,m  1520,  Pope 
Leo  issued  a  Bull  in  which  forty-one  propositions  from 
Luther's  writings  were  declared  heretical  ;  and  he  himself 
was  excommunicated  in  case  he  refused  to  retract  his  errors 
within  sixty  days.  Luther  replied  by  a  work  which  he 
called  "Against  the  Bull  of  Antichrist,"  and  publicly 
burned  the  Bull  in  Wittenberg. 

4   Charles  V.  and  the  Reformation.— Meanwhile,  Charles 
V  had  been  elected  King  of  the  Romans.     Luther's  party 
waited  anxiously  to  see  on  which  side  he  would  declare 
himself.     Luther  even  sent  him  a  letter,  urging  him  to  see 
to  the  reformation  of  the  Church.      Had  Charles  joined  the 
reforming  party,   the   whole    future    history  of    Germany 
would  have  been  different ;  but  it  was  hardly  possible  that 
he  should  do  so.      He  had  no  love  for  the  Papacy  as  a 
secular  power,  as  he  repeatedly  proved  during  his  long 
reign      But  he  was  a  sincere  Catholic.     Besides,  he  had 
more  of  the  old  Imperial  feeling  than  had  been  displayed 
by  any  Emperor  or  King  of  the  Romans  for  a  long  time. 
He  looked  on  himself  as  raised  far  above  all  other  earthly 
rulers,  and  wished  to  bring  back  the  Empire  to  its  old 
crandeur.     But  if  he  were  to  be  an  Emperor  m  the  sense 
that    Charles    the    Great,  Otto  L,  and   Henry   III    were 
Emperors,  he  was  bound   to  support  the  Church,  for  the 
Church  and  the  Empire  rested  on  the  same  foundations, 
and  it  was  the  highest  duty  and  privilege  of  the  secular  ruler 
of  the  world  •  to  defend  the  spiritual  ruler  against  all  his 
enemies.     Charles,  therefore,  did  not  hesitate  as  to  which 
side  he  should  take  in  the  great  struggle  which  had  now 
bc-;m   and  which  threatened  to  divide  Germany  into  two 


\ 


132 


CHARLES  K     THE  REFORMATION,       [chap. 


parties  far  more  widely  separated  from  each  other  than 
Welfs  and  Waiblings  in  the  old  days.  He  would  uphold 
the  Church,  and  make  it  great  and  strong  as  he  intended  to 
make  the  Empire. 

5.  Luther  before  the  Diet  of  Worms.— Charles  held  his 
first  Diet  at   Worms,  m   1521.     The  Papal  legate  wished 
him  to  take  measures   against   Luther  at  once  ;  but  the 
Saxon  Elector  and  others  urged  that  it  would  be  unfair  to 
condemn  any  one   unheard.      Luther  was  therefore  sum- 
moned to  appear  before  the  Diet,  and  received  a  safe- 
conduct  from   Charles.      On  his  way  to  Worms  he  was 
received  everywhere  with  welcome.     Some  of  his  friends, 
remembering  the  fate  of  Huss,  urged  him  to  turn  back  ;  but 
he  replied,  "  Were  there  as  many  devils  in  W^orms  as  there 
are  tiles  on  the  houses,  I  should  still  go  on."      When  he 
appeared  before    the   Diet,  he  was   asked  to   retract  his 
heresies  ;  but  he  answered  as  he  had  before  done  to  Cardinal 
Cajetanus.     "  Here  I  stand,"  he  said,  concluding  his  state- 
ment,  "  I   cannot  do  otherwise  :    God  help  me.     Amen." 
Charles  would  not  break  his  word,  and  therefore  allowed 
Luther  to  go  away  in  safety  ;  but  he  afterwards  issued  the 
Edict  of  Worms,  condemning   Luther  as  a  heretic,  and 
putting  to  the  ban  of  the  Empire  all  who  should  support 

him. 

6.  The  Diet  of  Worms  and  civil  affairs.— Charles's  first 
Diet  is  memorable  for  other  things  besides  the  appearance  ot 
Luther  before  it.  The  States  had  often  urged  Maximilian  to 
form  an  administrative  council,  which  should  aid  him  in  the 
government,  and  carry  it  on  in  his  absence.  The  plan  had 
even  been  tried,  but  had  come  to  nothing  through  the 
jealousy  of  Maximilian.  Charles  was  as  unwilling  as  his 
grandfather  to  give  up  any  of  his  power  ;  but  in  the  end  he 
had  to  yield,  and  a  council  was  formed,  appointed  partly  by 
himself  and  partly  by  the  States,  which  was  to  act  while  ha 


XIII.]         PROGRESS  OF  THE  REFORMATION.  133 


was  away  from  Germany.  The  Diet  of  Worms  also  drew 
up  a  Matricula,  which  settled  the  number  of  troops,  at  a 
certain  rate  of  pay,  that  were  to  be  raised  by  the  States  of 
the  realm.  This  Matricula  continued  in  force  till  the 
fall  of  the  Empire.  Before  the  Diet  broke  up  Charles 
divided  the  hereditary  Austrian  lands  between  himself  and 
his  brother  Ferdinand.  Soon  afterwards  Ferdinand  received 
all  these  lands,  and  thus  became  the  founder  of  the  Austrian 
branch  of  the  house  of  Habsburg,  while  Charles  became  the 
founder  of  the  Spanish  branch. 

7.  Charles  V.  and  Francis  I. — Immediately  after  the 
Diet  of  Worms,  Charles  left  Germany,  and  he  did  not  come 
back  for  about  eight  years.  During  this  time  his  thoughts 
were  chiefly  taken  up  by  his  great  struggle  with  Francis  I 
of  France,  who  had  seized  the  Duchy  of  Ali/an.  In  1525 
Francis  was  made  prisoner  at  the  datt/e  of  Pavia.  He  was 
taken  to  Madrid,  and  was  not  set  free  till  he  had  agreed  to 
very  hard  terms  ;  but  he  did  not  keep  the  treaty  he  had 
signed.  At  last,  after  repeated  defeats,  he  had  to  give  up 
for  a  time  all  hope  of  gaining  a  footing  in  Italy  ;  and 
in  1529  the  Peace  of  Cambray  was  concluded.  In  1530 
Charles  was  crowned  Emperor  and  King  of  Italy  at  ^^/^^^^7. 
After  him  no  Emperor  received  the  Imperial  crown  from  a 
Pope. 

8.  Progress  of  the  Reformation. — As  Luther  was  on  his 
way  home  from  Worms,  he  was  taken,  by  order  of  Frederick 
of  Saxony,  to  the  Wartburg,  near  Eisenach.  Frederick 
wished  him  to  stay  there  in  quiet  till  the  storm  he  had  raised 
had  to  some  extent  passed  away.  In  Luther's  absence  some 
of  his  friends  began  to  act  in  a  way  he  did  not  approve  of. 
In  1522,  therefore,  he  left  the  Wartburg,  and  went  to 
Wittenberg,  where  he  again  took  his  place  as  leader  of  the 
Reformation.  He  published  a  translation  of  the  New 
Testament,  which  he  had  written   in  the  Wartburg,  and 


134  CHARLES  V.      THE  REFORMATION,        [cha?. 

afterwards  translated  the  whole  Bible.     He  also  wrote  many 
theological  books  which  were  read  in  all  parts  of  Germany. 
Thus  his  doctrines  became  more  and  more  popular,  and 
were  adopted  by  several  powerful  princes,  among  whom 
were  John,  Elector  of  Saxony,  Frederick's  successor,  and 
Philip,  Landgrave  of  Hessen,     Some  great  Imperial  cities 
also  became  Lutheran.      In  1525  Luther  married  Catherine 
of  Bora,  a  nun.     His  example  was  followed  by  many  of  the 
clergy  who  sided  with  him,  so  that  the  breach  between  the 
reforming  party  and  the  Church  went  on  widening.    Charles 
by  no  means  gave  up  his  purpose  of  crushing  the  Lutheran 
heresy  ;    but   while   he  was    fighting  with   Francis    I.   he 
had  little  time   to  think  of  Germany,  and   he  could   not 
afford  just  then  to  make  the  States  who  supported  Luther 
his  enemies.      In  1526  a  Diet  met  at  Spcyer,  presided  over 
by  the  Archduke  Ferdinand,  which  ended  by  agreeing  that, 
till  a  General  Council  should  be  summoned,  the  government 
of  each  State  should  be  allowed  to  act  in  religious  matters  as 
it  saw  fit.     After  this  the  Elector  John,  Landgrave  Philip, 
and  other  princes,  made  great  changes  in  the  Church  m 
their  dominions.     They  brought  in  new  forms  of  Church 
government,  did  away  with  the   saying   of   Mass,  caused 
religious  services  to  be  conducted  in  the  language  of  the 
people,  and  gave  a  much  higher  place  to  preaching  than  it 
had  hitherto  held.    Convents  were  suppressed  ;  and  Church 
lands  were  seized,  and  only  in  part  applied  to  ecclesiastical 
uses.     Of  course  Luther  took  a  prominent  part  in  bringing 
about  these  changes.      His   chief  helper  was  his  friend 
Melanchthon,  a  man  of  much  gentler  character  than  himself, 
but  one  of  the  ablest  and  most  learned  of  the  Reformers. 

9.  Franz  von  Sickingen.— One  of  Luthei-'s  earliest  and 
best  friends  was  Franz  von  Sickingen,  a  famous  knight, 
rie  offered  to  protect  the  Reformer  in  his  castle  of  Ebern- 
burg,  in  case  his  life  should  be  endangered.      In  1522, 


XIII.]  THE  WAR  OF  THE  PEASANTRY.  t^5 

Sickingen  made  war  on  the  Elector  of  Trier.      Luthei 
entreated  him  to   remain  at  peace  ;   but  he  collected  an 
army  of  12,000  men,  entered  the  Electorate,  and  laid  great  v 
part  of  it  waste.     A  large  number  of  knights  joined  him. 
This  class  was  profoundly  discontented  with  the  rule  of  the 
princes,  and  vaguely  hoped,  under  Sickingen's  guidance,  to 
improve  its  position.     The  Elector  of  Trier,  however,  was 
aided  by   the  Elector   Palatine  and    Landgrave  Philip  of 
Hessen.     Sickingen  was  defeated,  and  in  1523  besieged  in 
his  castle  of  Landsstuhl     This  was  soon  taken ;   and  in  a 
few  days  afterwards  he  died,  having  been  severely  wounded. 
Ulrich  von  Hutten,  who  had  warmly  supported  Sickingen, 
went  to  Switzerland  after  the  death  of  his  friend.     In  a  few 

months  he  also  died. 

ID.  The  War  of  the  Peasantry.— We  have  seen  that  the 
peasantry  were  as  a  rule  very  ill  used  by  the  princes.     By 
the  heavy  taxes  laid  on  them  they  were  kept  in  utter  poverty, 
and  their  fields  were  often  destroyed  by  hunting-parties. 
No  class  in  Germany  joined  the  Reformation  more  heartily. 
They  hoped  that  it  might  somehow  help  them  to  obtain  their 
rights,  for  by  the  freedom  of  which  Luther  and  the  other 
Reformers  spoke  so  much  they  understood  political  and 
social    as   well   as    spiritual   freedom.      In    1524  a   great 
risin-  took  place  among  them  in  Swabiaj  and  it  soon  passed 
to  Franconia,  Elsass,  and    Thuringia.       Never  had  the 
peasantry  seemed  so  near  throwing  off  the  yoke  under  which 
they  had  lain  for  centuries.     Some  knights— among  others 
Gois  von  BerlichiNgen—]o\nQd    them.      They  looked  to 
Luther  for  help ;  but  although  a  Reformer  in  the  Church,  he 
had  no  wish  to  see  changes  brought  about  in  the  State,  and 
not  only  refused  to  help  the  peasants,  but  sided  strongly 
with  the  princes  and  urged  them  to  put  down  the  rebellion 
by  force.      Unhappilv,  the  peasants  hurt  their  own  cause  by 
rashness  and  violence.    At  last,  in  1525,  a  number  of  prmcef 


1^6 


CHARLES  V.      THE  REFORMATION,       [chap. 


united  against  them,  and  in  several  battles  thoroughly 
defeated  them.  The  rising  was  thus  utterly  crushed,  and  the 
burdens  laid  on  the  peasantry,  instead  of  being  lessened, 
were,  if  possible,  made  heavier  than  before. 

11.  Albert  of  Brandenburg  becomes  Duke  of  Prussia.— 
When  the  Reformation  began,  the  Grand  Master  of  the 
Teutonic  Order  was  Albert^  a  prince  of  the  house  of 
Brandenburg.  He  became  a  Lutheran,  and  in  1525  made 
a  treaty  with  Sigmund  /.,  King  of  Poland,  whereby  the 
Teutonic  Order  came  to  an  end  as  a  sovereign  power,  and 
Albert  received  the  eastern  part  of  Prussia  in  fief  of  Sig- 
mund as  a  hereditary  Duchy.  The  Teutonic  Order  looked 
on  Albert's  conduct  as  treachery  ;  but  he  kept  the  new 
Duchy,  and  handed  it  on  to  his  children.  In  the  end,  as 
we  shall  see,  it  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  electoral  branch 
of  the  Brandenburg  family,  and  became  independent  of 
Poland. 

1 2.  The  Archduke  Ferdinand  becomes  King  of  Bohemia 
and  Hungary. — In  1522  the  Archduke  Ferdinand  had 
married  a  daughter  of  Wladislaus,  King  of  Bohemia  and 
Hungary.  Lewis  11.^  the  son  and  successor  of  Wladislaus, 
was  killed  at  the  battle  of  Mohacs  in  1 526.  Ferdinand  was 
then  elected  and  crowned  King  oi  Bohemia.  He  was  after- 
wards chosen,  by  a  party  of  Hungarian  nobles,  King  of 
Hungary.  Another  party  had  already  raised  John^ 
Waiwode  of  Transstlvania,  to  the  Hungarian  throne. 
This  double  election  gave  rise  to  war,  in  the  course  of 
which  John  craved  help  from  the  Sultan  Sulcyvtan,  and 
consented  to  hold  the  crown  as  his  vassal.  Suleyman 
came  to  Hungary  in  1529,  at  the  head  of  a  great  army,  and 
not  only  overran  the  country,  but  entered  Austria,  and 
besieged  Vienna,  which,  however,  he  was  unable  to  take. 
Even  after  Suleyman  left  Austria  and  Hungary,  Ferdinand 
was  not  acknowledged  by  the  whole  Hungarian  nation  ;  but 


XliL]     THE  REFORM  A  TION  IN  SWITZERLAND.      137 

his  party  continued  to  support  him.  From  this  time  the 
crown  of  Hungary  was  always  held  by  an  Archduke  of 
Austria.  It  was  still  for  some  time  nominally  elective  ;  but 
in  the  end  it  was  made  hereditary.  The  house  of  Austria 
also  always  held  Bohemia  after  Ferdinand's  time.  Thus 
the  German  branch  of  the  Austrian  family  became  very 
great,  and  took  its  place,  apart  from  the  Imperial  crown, 
as  one  of  the  leading  powers  of  Europe. 

13.  The  Lutherans  receive  the  name  of  "Protestants." — • 
The  Reformation  had  made  so  much  progress,  and  the 
reforming  party  had  given  up  so  many  old  beliefs  and 
ceremonies,  that  the  Catholics  were  now  thoroughly 
alarmed,  and  Charles  was  more  than  ever  resolved  to  do 
everything  he  could  to  uphold  the  Church.  In  1529  the 
Diet  again  met  at  Speyer  under  the  presidency  of  the 
Archduke  Ferdinand.  As  there  were  more  Catholics  than 
Lutherans  present,  a  decree  was  passed  forbidding  further 
changes  in  religion,  and  requiring  that  Mass  should  be  said 
in  all  churches.  The  Lutheran  princes  and  cities  entered 
a  formal  protest  against  this  decree,  whence  they  were 
called  Protestants — a  name  which  was  afterwards  given  to 
all  who  had  left  the  Church  of  Rome. 

14.  The  Reformation  in  Switzerland.  —  Meanwhile  a 
Reformation  had  been  going  on  in  some  Swiss  Cantons 
which  was  not  guided  by  Luther.  It  was  begun  in  Zurich 
in  1 519  by  Ulrich  Zwingli,  who  differed  in  some  points 
from  Luther,  especially  as  to  the  nature  of  the  Lord's 
Supper.  A  controversy  arose  between  the  two  theologians 
and  their  followers,  and  a  very  bitter  feeling  sprang  up. 
In  1529  Luther  and  Zwingli  met  at  Marburg  ^  but  n^ 
understanding  was  arrived  at.  In  the  end  two  chui: 
were  formed,  the  Lutheran  and  the  Reformed^ 
which  disliked  the  other  for  a  long  time  alip^ 
as  both  disliked  the  Catholics. 


-^•"m«iiJ"i"'  ^aigr 


■4 


='1 


I 


138 


CHARLES  V.      THE  REFORAfAT/Oy.         [ciiaf. 


15.  The  Diet  of  Augsburg,  1530.  -When  Chnilcs  had 
driven  the  French  from  Italy,  and  received  the  Imperial 
crown,  he  at  last  turr.ed  his  thou.c;hts  seriously  to  Cierniany. 
In  1530  he  crossed  the  Alps,  and  opened  a  great  Diet  .at 
Aiigsbiirf^.  He  hoped  to  gain  over  the  chief  Lutheran 
stales  without  much  difliculty,  but  he  soon  found  that  he 
had  mistaken  the  strcni;lh  of  the  new  movement.  The 
i^utherans  laid  lu'fore  the  Diet  a  statiMncnl  (»f  ihcir  hrhrf* 
vvhli  h  li.iil  hicMj  di.iwii  tip  l»y  M«'l.iiK  hllum,  and  approved 
by  Luihcr.  This  statement  was  afterwards  called  the 
Aiif^shnn^  Confession^  and  became  the  chief  standard  of 
faith  among  the  Lutheran  churches.  A  great  deal  of  dis- 
cussion went  on  between  the  two  parties  ;  but  neither  side 
would  give  way.  At  last  the  1  Chclor  John  and  Landgrave 
Philip  left  Augsburg.  Soon  afterwards  Charles  issued  a 
decree  in  which  he  condemned  the  Lutheran  heresy,  and 
commanded  all  who  had  acccj)ted  it  to  return  to  their 
allegiance  to  the  Church.  All  Church  property  that  had 
been  seized  was  to  be  given  back,  and  suppressed  convents 
were  again  to  be  set  up.  Those  who  refused  to  obey  this 
decree  were  to  be  put  to  the  ban  of  the  Empire. 

16.  The  Archduke  Ferdinand  is  elected  King  of  the 
Romans.  -  As  the  administrative  council  had  beetj  friendly 
to  the  Lutherans,  the  Catholics  wished  that  a  King  of  tlic 
Romans  might  be  appointed,  and  urged  Charles  to  get  one 
elected.  He  proposed  his  brother  Ferdinand  to  the 
Electors.  John  of  Saxony  opposed  the  election  ;  but  the 
other  Electors  voted  for  Ferdinand,  and  he  was  crowned  at 
Aach'^n  in  1531. 

!7.  The  Schmalkaldic  League. — While  the  negotiations 
for  Ferdinand's  election  were  going  on,  the  Lutheran  princes 
met  at  Sc/tmai/ca/den,  and  formed  a  League  for  mutual 
defence.  After  the  election  they  met  again,  and  confirmed 
their  League,  which  was  joined  also  by  the  Lutlicran  cities 


'5tU  r  '^SAOQT^  UMOUS' 91EP:9ITP~ym  Jt»yc  ^n  wi^v^MJ.M^^ 


h 


Xlii.l     TI/E  KEIJCIOUS  IKACK  UJ  K'URNlUiRG.       139 


This  League  was  called  the  Schmalkaldic  Lcai^ur.  Some 
of  its  members  would  at  once  have  appealed  to  arms ;  but 
the  more  moderate  opposed  this,  so  that  war  was  for  a  time 
avoided. 

18.  The  Religious  Peace  of  Niirnberg.  The  Turks.— 
Allhoigh  Suleyman  went  back  to  Constantinople  in  i  <;29. 
he  did  not  inl( ml  l«»  lr.i\«-  Ihiiij'.iiy  and  (!<-MM.iiiy  in  p(  .h  r 
In  i5J_'lie  ichniii-d  at  the  hcail  of  a  nmch  gioater  arm) 
than  before.  His  aj)i)roach  caused  great  alarm;  but 
the  Lutheran  princes  refused  to  help  Charles  unless  he 
withdrew  the  decree  of  Auj^sburg.  Charles  was  very  un- 
willing to  yield  ;  but  it  was  necessary  that  he  should  raise 
a  force  strong  enough  to  drive  back  the  Turks.  In  1532, 
rlierefore,  he  granted  the  Ju/i^ioits  Peace  of  Nih-nberg,  by 
which  full  freedom  of  worship  was  given  to  the  Lutherans 
until  a  General  Council  or  the  next  Diet  should  have  met. 
The  Lutheran  States  then  hastened  to  join  the  Emperor 
against  the  Turks.  Suleyman,  hnding  all  parties  united 
against  him,  hastily  man  hcd  back  to  his  own  dominions. 
Afterwards,  however,  the  Turks  returned  to  Hungary,  sup- 
ported the  party  o|)pose(l  to  I'ertlinand,  and  concpiered  a 
large  part  of  the  country. 

19.  Foreign  Wars  of  Charles  V.— During  his  second 
absence  from  Germany,  Charles  made  two  famous  expedi- 
tions against  JIayraddin  liarharossa^  a  pirate  who  had 
made  himself  master  of  A/i;irrs  and  'J'unis^  and  held  many 
thousands  of  Christians  as  prisoners.  During  part  of  the 
interval  between  these  cxj)editions,  Charles  had  to  carry  on 
another  war  with  Francis  L,  who  a;^'ain  laid  claim  to  the 
Duchy  of  Milan.  A  truce  was  concluded  for  ten  years  at 
AVV^  in  153S;  but  in  1542  war  broke  out  again.  In  1544 
the  Peace  of  Crcspy  was  concluded,  and  after  this  there 
was  no  more  open  war  between  the  two  sovereigns. 

2a  Further  progress  of  the  Reformation. — The  Reforma 


W 


i     m 


\m 


1;  •■■^5i 


..  \\\ 


■  <ft 


i,i 


m 


:iiL1 


'i 


-m 


/ 


4 '  ■<  j 
f'  •) 


140  CHARLES  V.      TlfE  REFORMATION,        [chvf 

tion  continued  to  make  prn^^rcss,  especially  in  the  north  cj 
Gciinany.  joaclum  JI.^  Illeclor  of  BriUiifru/furj^^  who 
succeeded  liis  father,  a  br^oied  CallioUc,  in  1534,  became 
a  Lutheran.  I-^rrdn'icI:  I/.,  i:ieclor  Palatine,  and  Duke 
Ci'ori^e  of  Sd.vony,  also  l)rou.i;ht  the  Lutheran  doctrine  into 
their  dominions.  ICven  Archbishop  lltrmami  of  Koln  had 
sympathy  uitli  the  Reformation,  and  did  nothing  to  put  it 
down  amon«;  his  subjects.  Thus  nearly  all  the  noiihern 
pan  ol  Clermany  became  Luiheian.  In  tlu*  south  U'/tr/tm- 
Ot:r^r  was  Protestant.  Duke  U/nch  of  Wiirlemberi;  had 
been  driven  from  his  dominions  in  1520  by  the  Swabian 
Lcn<^uie,  but  was  restored  in  1534  by  the  intervention  of 
LandLjravc  Philip  of  Hcssen. 

21,  Charles  V.  and  the  Lutherans  prepare  for  war.— 
So  lonj,'  as  Charles  was  at  war  with  Francis  L  or  the  Turks, 
and  needed  the  help  of  all  the  German  States,  he  did 
nothin-  to  offend  the  Lutherans.  He  even  confnmed  more 
than  once  the  Peace  of  Niirnberrj.  lUit  he  never  rcallv 
gave  up  his  purpose  of  crushing;  out  heresy  in  Germany. 
At  last,  when  the  peace  of  Cresjiy  had  been  si;;ned,  in  13.14, 
he  felt  he  was  stroni,'  enough  to  undertake  the  task  in 
earnest.  He  had  ^ot  Pope  Paul  1 1.  to  sununon  a  Cleneial 
Council;  and  it  met  at  />,;//  in  1545.  The  Lutherans 
refused  to  rccoi^nisc  it,  on  the  i;round  that  the  Pope  wa:. 
a  party  to  the  dispute,  and  had  already  condemned  them 
as  heretics.  Charles  therefore  began  secretly  to  prepare 
for  war,  and  made  a  treaty  with  the  l'o[)C,  by  which  the 
latter  undertook  to  help  him  with  men  and  money.  He 
succeeded  in  ^^etiing  the  Elector  of  Brandenburg,  the 
Elector  Palatine,  and  other  Lutheran  princes  to  remain 
neutral ;  and  with  Mduricc,  Duke  of  Saxony,  Duk<: 
George's  successor,  he  made  a  separate  treaty.  The 
Schmalkaldic  Lcd^uc^  however,  remained  true  to  its 
principles  ;     and    its    leading    members    began,    like    the 


Slll1^^3AOaFii/wou!r^iKirsTiy.«:fM4  j^yt^  a"  ^*  k^—-^- 


XIILj 


T/IE  SCHMALKALDIC  WAR. 


M» 


Kmperor,  to  collcc  i  iio(»|»s.  (.haiics  tiicd  hard  to  make 
the  Lutheran  cities  l)elieve  that  he  did  not  intend  to  war 
against  their  reli-.ioii,  but  only  against  certain  rei3ellious 
Jiiinces.  Put  they,  distrusting  him,  raised  an  army,  and 
placed  it  under  .S',/-,is/i,nt  Sihartlin,  one  of  the  greatest 
generals  of  the  day. 

22.  Death  of  Luther,  before  war  actually  broke  out, 
Luther  died  in  1546  at  J-lisUhcu,  wliither  he  had  gone  to 
settle  a  dispute  l^clween  the  Counts  of  Mdns/rid,  He  liad 
striven  to  j)reserve  peace  ;  but  tlic  movement  he  had 
started  had  long  passed  to  some  extent  beyond  his  control. 

23.  The  Schmalknldic  War.— The  war  began  in  the 
summer  of  1546.  Charles  was  then  at  Rc^^^nishun^^  where 
he  liad  for  some  time  been  holdin;;  a  Diet.  If  the  Lutheran 
leaders  had  acted  vigorously,  they  might  have  gaiired  an 
;id vantage  at  once,  for  at  fust  the  Emperor  had  a  much 
smaller  body  of  troops  than  thev.  lint  they  were  dis- 
united, and  wavered  so  much  in  their  plans  that  the  Papal 
troops  and  an  army  bom  the  Low  Countries  both  managed 
to  join  Charles.  The  latter  acted  with  much  energy.  In 
a  few  months  he  h.id  coiupicred  all  the  free  Imperial  cities 
connected  with  the  S(  hmalkaldic  League.  Meanwhile  the 
Lutheran  prinres  had  .separated,  and  gone  with  their  trooj^s 
to  their  own  territories.  In  1547  Charles  defeated  the 
Saxon  army  in  the  battle  of  Miihlhcri:;^  and  took  the 
Elector  John  Frederick  prisoner.  Philip  of  Hessen,  seeing 
that  he  had  then  no  chance  of  success,  yielded,  and  was 
also  kept  as  a  prisoner  by  Charles.  The  Schmalkaldic 
War  thus  ended  in  the  complete  triumph  of  the  Emperor. 

24.  The  Interim.— In  1 54S  Charles  held  a  Diet  at 
Aui^sOitri;,  before  which  he  laid  a  plan  for  uniting  the 
Lutherans  to  the  Church,  known  as  the  Interim.  Some 
few  points  were  yielded  to  the  Lutherans  ;  but  on  the 
whole  matters  were  to  return  ver)'  much  to  the  position  in 


h    - 


1:^ 


\  A 


■Ill  ! 


'  ,  \- 


1  pi  ; 


!-.| 


T>IU   I 


I4i  CHARLES  V.      THE  REFORMATIONS.       [chap 


wliich  ihcy  IkkI  ))ccn  before  the  Reformation  l)e::.m.  No 
one  ill  the  Diet  formally  opposed  this  plan.  Charles  there- 
fore acted  as  if  it  had  become  law,  and  insisted  on  it^ 
being  introduced  into  all  the  Lutheran  States.  Most  of  the 
Lutheran  princes  nominally  accepted  the  Inttrim.  The 
Lutheran  cities  resisted  tor  a  time  ;  but  in  the  end  they 
also  were  compelled  to  yield. 

25.  Charles  V.  and  the  Elector  Maurice.—The  position 
of  Charles  now  seemed  very  splemlid.  He  had  broken  up 
the  Schmalkaldic  League,  and  had  forced  on  the  Lutherans 
a  scheme  which  was  meant  to  undo  everything  they  had 
done  towards  the  reformation  of  the  Church.  In  reality 
he  was  by  no  means  so  safe  as  he  seemed.  He  had 
made  Duke  Maurice  the  successor  of  John  Frederick  in 
the  Electorate  of  Saxony.  For  a  time  this  young  prince, 
whose  motives  it  is  not  always  easy  to  understand,  seemed 
to  be  the  Emperoi-'s  best  friend.  Gradually  his  feelings 
changed,  and  he  resolved  to  turn  against  Charles,  and  to 
become  the  upholder  of  the  Lutheran  faith.  He  got  some 
other  princes  to  join  him,  but,  what  was  more  important,  he 
made  a  secret  treaty  with  Ilcury  II.  of  France,  whereby  the 
latter  undertook  to  help  him  against  the  Emperor.  Suddenly, 
in  1552,  when  Charles  was  at  Iitnshnick,  Maurice  began  to 
march  southwards  with  a  large  army,  part  of  which  he  had 
been  put  at  the  head  of  for  the  purjmse  of  compelling 
Magticbitrg  to  accept  the  Interim.  At  the  same  time  Henry 
IL  entered  Lorraine  as  ''Protector  of  Jte  Liberties  oj 
Germany,"  and  seized  the  three  bisho[)ricks  of  Metz,  Tout, 
and  Verdun,  Charles  was  wholly  unprepared  to  meet  tliis 
sudden  movement.  He  had  raised  "the  fears  of  even  the 
Catholic  States  by  the  greatness  of  his  power,  and  had 
offended  them  by  trying  to  get  his  son  Philip  elected  King 
of  the  Romans  in  place  of  his  brother  Ferdinand.  Thus 
not  a  single  Catholic  pi'jice  or  city  offered  to  help  him  ia 


fTr»v/Mr.  Mn»\/H»«'««»»^::;:v»iK2XH<ur^v:  •"'—-*  r^ ' 


XIII.] 


THE  TREATY  OF  PASSAU, 


'4.^ 


his  hour  of  need,  and  he  wlio  had  just  seemed  so  great  ha(A 
to  fly,  as  Maurice  approached,  in  order  to  cscajjc  beiny 
made  prisoner.  He  did  not  feel  himself  safe  ewii  in  Trent, 
but  pressed  forward  over  wild  mountain  paths,  accom|)anied 
by  only  a  few  followeis,  till  he  reached  the  village  of  Villach, 
m  Carint/iia. 

26.  The  Treaty  of  Passau  ~AltlK)ugh  he  was  brouglit 
so  low,  Charles  was  very  unwillinj;  to  yield  to  the  demands 
of  Maurice.  At  lcn;;th  he  was  persuaded  to  do  so,  and 
signed  the  I'reafy  of  Passau.  Hy  this  treaty  he  lost  all 
he  had  gained  in  the  Schmalkaldic  War,  for  he  liad  to 
promise  that  a  Diet  should  be  summoned  within  six 
months  for  the  settlement  of  religious  disputes,  that  mean- 
while those  who  held  the  Aui^sl)urg  Confession  should  be 
allowed  full  freedom  of  worship,  that  Lutherans  should  be 
admitted  with  Catholics  as  members  of  the  Imj)crial 
Chamber,  and  that  if  the  forthcoming  Diet  should  fail  to 
reconcile  Lutherans  and  Catholic  s  the  stipulations  in  favour 
of  the  former  should  continue  in  force  for  ever. 

27.  Charles  V.  and  Henry  H.  of  France. — When  peace 
had  been  restored  in  Germany,  Charles  at  once  gathered  an 
army  for  the  jnirpose  of  winning  back  the  district  in  Lor- 
raine seized  by  Henry  1 1.  Melz  was  besieged  for  some 
months,  but  could  not  be  taken.  In  the  end  the  three 
bishopricks  were  allowed  to  remain  in  the  hands  of  the 
French  King.  Thus  France,  which  had  already  got  pos- 
session of  the  greater  j)art  of  the  kingdom  of  Burgundy, 
began  to  increase  its  territory  at  the  expense  of  Germany. 

28.  The  Religious  Peace  of  Augsburg. — The  Diet  which 
the  Emperor  had  promised  to  summon  met  in  Augsburg  in 
1555.  After  much  discussion,  it  concluded  the  Religious 
Peace  of  Aui;s/>ur(^.  This  Peace  freed  the  Protestants 
from  the  jurisdiction  of  the  prelates,  allowed  them  to 
keep   the   ecclesiastical    property   that    had    been    seized. 


S  'I 


li 


;.l!i! 


/ 


144 


CHARLES  V.      THE  REFORMATION,       [chaf. 


and  gave  to  the  government  of  each  State  the  right  to 
set  up  either  the  Catholic  or  Protestant  religion.  A 
State  might  tolerate  both  religions  if  it  chose  ;  but  each 
prince  received  the  right  to  drive  out  those  who  did  not 
agree  with  him  in  religion.  The  treaty  also  provided  that 
if  a  spiritual  prince  became  a  Protestant  he  should  at  once 
have  to  give  up  his  office  and  its  revenues.  This  was  called 
the  Ecclesiastical  Reserifation^  and  was  not  allowed  by 
Protestants  to  be  binding  upon  them. 

29.  Abdication  and  death  of  Charles  V. — Charles  had  for 
some  time  failed  in  almost  all  his  schemes,  and  his  health 
was  quite  broken.  He  resolved,  therefore,  to  give  up  his 
various  crowns,  and  to  spend  his  last  years  in  private  life. 
In  1555  he  made  over  the  Low  Countries,  and  in  1556 
Spain  and  the  Two  Sicilies,  to  his  son  Philip.  He  still 
hoped  to  get  Philip  elected  King  of  the  Romans  ;  but  in  the 
end  he  saw  that  all  parties  were  opposed  to  this,  and  in  the 
autumn  of  1556  gave  up  the  government  of  Germany  to 
King  Ferdinand.  After  this  Charles  had  no  more  to  do 
with  Germany.  He  died  in  1558,  in  a  small  building  near 
the  monastery  of  San  Yuste^  in  Estreinadura^  whither  he 
had  retired  after  his  abdication. 

30.  Political  effects  of  the  Reformation. — There  were 
now  two  parties  strongly  opposed  to  each  other  in  Germany, 
the  Catholics  and  the  Protestants.  A  sort  of  peace  had 
been  patched  up  between  them  ;  but  they  were  as  far  as 
possible  from  being  reconciled.  The  Catholics  continued 
to  look  on  the  Church  property  which  Protestants  had 
seized  as  rightfully  theirs  ;  and  each  party  believed  the 
other  to  hold  deadly  error.  The  Emperor  did  not  hold  the 
position  of  an  impartial  judge  between  the  two  parties.  He 
was  not  only  a  Catholic,  but  in  virtue  of  his  office  the 
Protector  of  the  Catholic  Church.  The  Protestants  there- 
fore came  to  look  on  him  as  an  enemy  to  be  watched  and 


XIH.] 


LITERATURE  AND  ART, 


145 


opposed.  The  Protestant  princes  had  thus  a  new  motive 
for  trying  to  weaken  the  Imperial  authority ;  and  in  this 
the  Catholic  princes  were  not  unwilling  to  join  them.  From 
the  time  of  Charles,  therefore,  the  Imperial  government 
became  weaker  and  weaker,  while  the  States  became  more 
and  more  independent.  Even  the  Diet  lost  most  of  its 
power.  Any  proposal  laid  before  it  was  sure  to  be  opposed 
by  one  party  or  the  other,  so  that  it  could  do  very  little. 
The  courts  of  justice  were  also  weakened  by  the  difficulty 
of  appointing  judges  and  assessors  trusted  by  both  parties. 

31.  Literature  and  Art. — The  writings  of  Luther  are  by 
far  the  most  important  literary  works  of  the  time  of  the 
Reformation.  They — and  especially  the  translation  of  the 
Bible — were  so  much  read  that  the  High-Dutch  dialect  in 
which  they  were  written  became  the  literary  dialect  of 
Germany  for  all  future  time.  The  writer  whose  works  were 
most  read  next  to  those  of  Luther  was  the  poet  Hans  Sachs 
a  shoemaker  of  NUrnberg.  He  wrote  many  pieces,  and  did 
good  service  to  the  Reformation  by  his  wit  and  humour. 
There  were  several  great  painters  in  Germany  about  this 
time.  Of  these  the  chief  were  Albert  DUrer^  Han^  Holbein^ 
and  Lucas  Kranach.  Music  was  also  a  good  deal  culti- 
vated ;  and  some  fine  buildings  were  erected  in  the  so- 
called  Renaissance  style 


fCH.  XIV.] 


FERDINAND  I. 


147 


dence  of  the  princes  ;  power  0/ the  Diet ;  it  becomes  a  permanent 
body  {ic))— International  Law  {zo)— Literature  and  Science  (21) 
— Superstitions  (22). 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

THE  THIRTY  YEARS*  WAR. 

Ferdinand  I.  tries  to  conciliate  the  Protestants ;  the  Protestants 
divided  among  themselves  ;  death  of  Ferdinand  I.  ( I ) — progress  of 
Protestantism  during  the  reign  of  Maximilian  II.  ;  his  death  (2) 
— Rudolf  II.  a  violent  Catholic ;  power  of  the  Jesuits ;  weak 
government  of  Rudolf  II.  ;  his  brothers  recognize  Matthias  as 
head  of  tlie  House  (3) — the  Protestant  Union  and  the  Catholic 
League  ;  the  Elector  of  Brandenburg  becomes  Duke  of  Prussia  (4) 
— Rudolf  II.  concedes  religious  freedom  to  Bohemia  :  his  death  (5) 
— Matthias  crowned;  Ferdinand  of  Slyria  made  his  coadjutor  (6) 
— disturbances  in  Bohemia;  death  of  Matthias  (7) — Frederick 
v..  Elector  Palatine^  chosen  King  of  Bohemia;  Ferdinand 
crowned  Emperor;  war  with  Bohemia;  the  Bohemians  de- 
feated; punishment  of  Bohemia  {%)— progress  of  the  war ; 
apparent  triumph  of  the  Emperor  {9) — renewal  of  tlu  war ; 
Albert  von  Wallenstein  raises  an  army;  his  victories;  he  is 
uttable  to  take  Stralsund  (10) — the  edict  of  Restitution  {11) — 
dismissal  of  IVallenstein  ;  Gustavus  Adolphus  comes  to  the  help  of 
the  Protestants ;  defeat  of  Tilly  (12) — Gustavus  defeats  Tilly  a 
second  time.,  and  takes  possession  of  Munich  (13) — IVallenstein 
raises  a  second  army ;  battle  of  Liitzen ;  death  of  Gustavus 
Adolphus  (14) — murder  of  IVcdienstein  (15) — treaty  of  Axel 
Oxenstiern  with  Cardinal  Richelieu  (16) — death  of  Ferdinand 
II.  ;  progress  of  the  war  (17) — the  Peace  of  Westphalia  ;  terrible 
results  of  the  war;  no  party  satisfied  with  the  peace ;  gains  of 
Fratue  and  Siveden  ;  independence  of  Switzerland  and  the  United 
Provinces  recognized;  changes  within  Germany  (18) — indepen- 


I.  Ferdinand  I.— Ferdinand  was  crowned  in  1558.     He 
did  not  receive  the  Imperial  crown  from  the  Pope  ;  but  he 
took  the  title  of  Emperor  immediately  after  he  ascended  the 
throne  of  Germany.     In  this  his  example  was  followed  by 
all  German  Kings  who  came  after  him.      He  was  acknow- 
ledged by  the  Pope  on  condition  that  he  should  not  observe 
the  Treaty  of  Augsburg  ;  but  Ferdinand  knew  the  strength 
of  Protestantism,  and  he  was  too  much  taken  up  with  the 
affairs  of  Hungary  to  raise  up  enemies  needlessly.    He  tried 
to  make  the  Protestants  as  friendly  towards  him  as  possible, 
and  would  have  been  glaJ  if  the  Council  of  Trent  had  given 
way  to  them  on  some  points.      The  Protestants  were  now 
broken   up   into  parties.       The    Lutheran  and   Reformed 
Churches  were  very  jealous  of  each  other  ;  and  the  former 
was  divided  into  a  moderate  and  an  extreme  party.     These 
divisions  did  much  harm ;    but  in  spite  of  them   Protest- 
antism made  great  progress.      After  doing  his  utmost  to 
keep  the  Empire  in  peace,  Ferdinand  died  in  1564. 

2.  Maximilan  XL— Ferdinand  had  broken  up  the  Habs" 
burg  possessions  into  three  unequal  parts,  giving  one  to  each 
of  his  sons.     The  eldest,  Maximilian,  who  received  Austria 
proper  and  became  King  of  Bohemia  and  Hungary,  suc- 
ceeded Ferdinand  as  King  of  Germany  and  as  Emperor. 
During  his  reign  the  Jesuits— 2c^  order  recently  instituted 
—worked  hard  to  keep  Protestantism  from  spreading  ;  but 
Maximilian  was  a  man  of  very  enlightened  opinions,  and 
had  no  wish  to  favour  the  Catholics  any  more  than  his 
other  subjects.    He  was  even  suspected  of  being  a  Lutheran. 
The  result  of  his  mild  government  was  that  even  in  Austria 
Protestantism  became  very  powerful,  and  that  it  increased 


fev 


143 


THE  THIRTY  YEARS'  WAR, 


[chap. 


its  strength  in  aU  other  parts  of  Germany.  The  larger 
number  of  Germans  were  now  probably  members  of  one 
or  other  of  the  Protestant  Churches.  So  many  adopted 
arms  as  a  profession  at  this  time  that  Maximilian  wished 
to  prevent  foreign  States  from  enlisting  troops  in  Germany  j 
but  the  Diet  would  not  consent  to  this,  and  the  country 
suffered  a  great  deal  from  large  numbers  of  "  Landsknechte  " 
who  were  too  idle  to  live  by  honest  industry.  Maximilian 
died  in  1576,  having  got  his  son  Rudolf  some  time  before 
elected  King  of  the  Romans. 

3.  Rudolf  II. — Rudolf  was  very  different  from  his  fathei 
sjid  grandfather.      He  had  been  brought  up  in  the  Spanish 
Court,  and  was  of  a  gloomy  disposition.     He  was  a  bigoted 
Catholic,  and  most  anxious  to  root  out  the  new  faith  from 
his  hereditary  lands.     The  Jesuits  became  very  powerful, 
and  redoubled  their  efforts  against  Protestantism.      Rudolf, 
however,  was  a  man  of  weak  will,  and  although  he  issued 
many  decrees  against  the  Lutherans,  they  never  came  to 
anything.     His  weakness  was  such  that  Imperial  govern- 
ment, and  government  in  his  hereditary  possessions,  were 
at  last  almost  at  an  end.      His  kinsmen  became  seriously 
alarmed  for  the  power  of  their  House,  and  wished  to  appoint 
a  colleague  or  successor  to  the  Emperor.      Roused  by  these 
proposals,  Rudolf  tried  to  prove  that  he  could  still  rule,  by 
taking  strong  measures  against  the  Protestants  in  Bohemia 
and  Hungar>'.      The  Hungarians  were  so  oppressed  that 
they  appealed  for  help  to  the  Turks,  who  were  always  only 
too  glad  to  find  an  opportunity  to  injure  the  House  of  Habs- 
burg.     The  Archdukes  met  in  1606,  and  formally  acknow- 
ledged Matthias,  the  Emperor's  brother,  as  head  of  the 
House.     Spain  assented  to  this  arrangement     Rudolf  was 
still  Emperor ;  but  he  was  forced  to  resign  all  his  dominions 
except  Bohemia  to  Matthias. 
4.  The  Protestant  Union  and  the  Catholic  League.     The 


XIV.]  PROTESTANT  UNION  &>  CATHOLIC  LEAGi, 


151 


Elector  of  Brandenburg  becomes  Duke  of  Prussia.— Man, 
Protestants  were  alarmed  by  the  attempts  Rudolf  had 
made  to  put  them  down,  and  especially  by  his  allowing 
the  Duke  of  Bavaria  to  seize  the  free  city  of  Donauworth, 
formerly  a  Bavarian  town,  and  make  it  Catholic.  In  1608 
a  number  of  Protestants  joined  together  and  formed, 
for  ten  years,  a  league  called  The  Union.  Its  formation 
was  due  chiefly  to  the  exertions  of  Prince  Christian 
of  Anhalt,  who  had  busily  intrigued  with  He7iry  IV.  of 
France;  but  its  head  was  the  Elector  Palatine.  As 
the  latter  belonged  to  the  Reformed  Church,  the  Lu- 
therans for  the  most  part  treated  the  Union  coldly  ;  and 
the  Elector  of  Saxony  would  have  nothing  to  do  with  it.  It 
soon  had  an  opportunity  of  acting.  Duke  William  of 
Jtilich,  who  held  Jiilich,  Cleve,  and  other  lands,  died  in 
1609.  John  Sigmund,  Elector  of  Brandenburg,  and  the 
Palsgrave  of  Neuburg,  both  members  of  the  Union,  claimed 
to  be  his  heirs,  and  took  possession  of  his  lands.  The 
Emperor  Rudolf  sent  his  brother,  the  Archduke  Leopold, 
Bishop  of  Passau,  to  drive  out  these  princes.  The  Union 
thereupon  formed  an  alliance  with  Henry  IV.  of  France,  and, 
coming  to  the  aid  of  its  members,  scattered  the  forces  of 
the  Archduke  in  16 10.  The  Catholics  now  took  fright,  and 
hastened  to  form  a  League  which  should  hold  the  Union  in 
check.  It  was  formed  for  nine  years,  and  the  supreme 
command  was  given  to  Maximilian,  Duke  of  Bavaria. 
The  death  of  Henry  IV.  took  away  from  the  Union  its 
chief  source  ot  strength,  so  that  it  shrank  from  a  general 
war.  The  two  princes,  however,  who  had  given  rise  to 
the  quarrel,  kept  for  a  time  the  Julich-Cleve  territory.  In 
[611  the  power  of  the  Elector  of  Brandenburg  was  further 
increased  by  his  succeeding  to  the  Duchy  of  Prussia.  From 
this  time  East  Prussia  was  always  joined  to  the  Mark  or 
Electorate  of  Brandenburg.     It  was  now,  therefore,  that  the 


143 


THE  THIRTY  YEARS'  WAR, 


[chap. 


its  strength  in  aU  other  parts  of  Germany.  The  larger 
number  of  Germans  were  now  probably  members  of  one 
or  other  of  the  Protestant  Churches.  So  many  adopted 
arms  as  a  profession  at  this  time  that  Maximilian  wished 
to  prevent  foreign  States  from  enlisting  troops  in  Germany  ; 
but  the  Diet  would  not  consent  to  this,  and  the  country 
suffered  a  great  deal  from  large  numbers  of  "  Landsknechte  " 
who  were  too  idle  to  live  by  honest  industry.  Maximilian 
died  in  1 576,  having  got  his  son  Rudolf  some  time  before 
elected  King  of  the  Romans. 

3.  Rudolf  II.— Rudolf  was  very  different  from  his  fathei 
sjid  grandfather.      He  had  been  brought  up  in  the  Spanish 
Court,  and  was  of  a  gloomy  disposition.     He  was  a  bigoted 
Catholic,  and  most  anxious  to  root  out  the  new  faith  from 
his  hereditary  lands.     The  Jesuits  became  vcr>'  powerful, 
and  redoubled  their  efforts  against  Protestantism.      Rudolf, 
however,  was  a  man  of  weak  will,  and  although  he  issued 
many  decrees  against  the  Lutherans,  they  never  came  to 
anything.     His  weakness  was  such  that  Imperial  govern- 
ment, and  government  in  his  hereditary  possessions,  were 
at  last  almost  at  an  end.     His  kinsmen  became  seriously 
alarmed  for  the  power  of  their  House,  and  wished  to  appoint 
a  colleague  or  successor  to  the  Emperor.      Roused  by  these 
proposals,  Rudolf  tried  to  prove  that  he  could  still  rule,  by 
taking  strong  measures  against  the  Protestants  in  Bohemia 
and  Hungar>'.      The  Hungarians  were  so  oppressed  that 
they  appealed  for  help  to  the  Turks,  who  were  always  only 
too  glad  to  find  an  opportunity  to  injure  the  House  of  Habs- 
burg.     The  Archdukes  met  in  1606,  and  formally  acknow- 
ledged Matthias,  the  Emperor's  brother,  as  head  of  the 
House.     Spain  assented  to  this  arrangement     Rudolf  was 
still  Emperor ;  but  he  was  forced  to  resign  all  his  dominions 
except  Bohemia  to  Matthias. 
4.  The  Protestant  Union  and  the  Catholic  League.    The 


XIV.]  PROTESTANT  UNIONS  CATHOLIC  LEAy 


Elector  of  Brandenburg  becomes  Duke  of  Prussia. — MaSI 
Protestants  were  alarmed  by  the  attempts  Rudolf  had 
made  to  put  them  down,  and  especially  by  his  allowing 
the  Duke  of  Bavaria  to  seize  the  free  city  of  Donauwbrth, 
formerly  a  Bavarian  town,  and  make  it  Catholic.  In  1608 
a  number  of  Protestants  joined  together  and  formed, 
for  ten  years,  a  league  called  The  Union.  Its  formation 
was  due  chiefly  to  the  exertions  of  Prince  Christian 
of  Anhalty  who  had  busily  intrigued  with  Henry  IV.  of 
France;  but  its  head  was  the  Elector  Palatine.  As 
the  latter  belonged  to  the  Reformed  Church,  the  Lu- 
therans for  the  most  part  treated  the  Union  coldly ;  and 
the  Elector  of  Saxony  would  have  nothing  to  do  with  it.  It 
soon  had  an  opportunity  of  acting.  Duke  William  of 
Jttlich,  who  held  Jiilich,  Cleve,  and  other  lands,  died  in 
1609.  John  Sigmund,  Elector  of  Brandenburg,  and  the 
Palsgrave  of  Neuburg,  both  members  of  the  Union,  claimed 
to  be  his  heirs,  and  took  possession  of  his  lands.  The 
Emperor  Rudolf  sent  his  brother,  the  Archduke  Leopold, 
Bishop  of  Passau,  to  drive  out  these  princes.  The  Union 
thereupon  formed  an  alliance  with  Henry  IV.  of  France,  and, 
coming  to  the  aid  of  its  members,  scattered  the  forces  of 
the  Archduke  in  1610.  The  Catholics  now  took  fright,  and 
hastened  to  foiTn  a  League  which  should  hold  the  Union  in 
check.  It  was  formed  for  nine  years,  and  the  supreme 
command  was  given  to  Maximilian,  Duke  of  Bavaria. 
Tlie  death  of  Henry  IV.  took  away  from  the  Union  its 
chief  source  ot  strength,  so  that  it  shrank  from  a  general 
war.  The  two  princes,  however,  who  had  given  rise  to 
the  quarrel,  kept  for  a  time  the  Jiilich-Cleve  territory.  In 
161 1  the  power  of  the  Elector  of  Brandenburg  was  further 
increased  by  his  succeeding  to  the  Duchy  of  Prussia.  From 
this  time  East  Prussia  was  always  joined  to  the  Mark  or 
Electorate  of  Brandenburg.     It  was  now,  therefore,  that  the 


THE  THIRTY  YEARS'  WAR, 


[cnAV. 


rouse  of  Brandenburg  laid  the  foundations  of  its  future 

greatness. 

5.    The   Letter  of    Majesty.       Death   of    Rudolf  II.— 
Matthias,  in  order  to  pacify  the  Austrian  States,  granted 
them  full  religious  liberty.     In  1609  the  Bohemian  States 
also  obtained  from   Rudolf  a  Royal  Charter,  called    The 
Letter  of  Majesty,  conceding  to  nobility,  knights  and  towns 
perfect  freedom  in  religious  matters,  and  the  right  to  build 
Protestant  churches  and  schools  on  their  own  and  on  the 
royal  lands.     Bohemia  showed  no  gratitude  for  this  favour. 
Suspecting  his  designs,  the  Bohemians  even  shut  Rudolf  up 
in  his  castle  at  Prague  in  161 1,  and  asked  Matthias  to  come 
to  their  aid.     He  did  so,  and  seized  the  supreme  power. 
Next  year  Rudolf  died. 

6.  Matthias.— Matthias  was  crowned  at  Frankfurt  with 
great  pomp,  but  he  was  no  better  fitted  for  the  throne  than 
his  brother.      He  was   compelled  to   yield   much  to  the 
Protestants,  yet  favoured  the  Jesuits   in  their  continued 
efforts  to  convert  Germany.     His  government  was  so  feeble 
that  his  brothers  at  length  made  him  accept  Ferdlnayid, 
Duke  of  Styria,  as  his  coadjutor.      In   161 7  Ferdinand  was 
elected  as  Rudolfs  successor  to  the  crowns  of  Bohemia 
and  Hungary ;   and  from  this  time  all  real  power  in  the 
Habsburg  possessions   was  wielded  by  him.      Ferdinand 
was  a  young  man,  but  had  already  given  proof  of  great 
energy  of  character.      He  was   most  anxious   to   become 
Emperor  after  the  death  of  Matthias,  and  hoped  to  bring 
back  the  Empire  to  something  like  its  old  power  and  great- 
ness.    The  Protestants  looked  forward  with  dread  to  his 
reign  if  he  should  receive  the  Imperial  crown.     Styria  had 
become  almost  wholly  Lutheran.      When  Ferdinand  suc- 
ceeded his  father,  he  had  driven  out  the  Protestant  families, 
and    made    the  land   altogether    Catholic.      No   Catholic 
prince  had  ever  shown  himself  more  reckless  as  to  the 


XIV.] 


DISTURBANCES  IN  BOHEMIA, 


151 


means  by  which  he  served  his  Church.  The  Protestants, 
therefore,  had  good  reason  to  fear  that  if  he  became 
Emperor  he  would  renew  the  policy  of  Charles  V.,  and 
try  to  bring  back  the  old  state  of  things,  in  which  there  was 
but  one  Church  as  there  was  but  one  Empire.  Events 
proved  that  these  fears  were  well  founded. 

7.    Disturbances  in    Bohemia.       Death   of    Matthias. — 
The  last    days    of    Matthias   were    very   troubled.      Two 
Protestant  churches  were  built  in  Bohemia,  one   in    the 
territory  of  the  Archbishop  of  Prague,  the  other  in  that  of 
the  Abbot  of  Braunau.     These  princes,  with  permission  of 
the  Emperor,  pulled  down  one  of  the  churches,  and  shut 
up  the   other.       The   Protestants   complained;    but  their 
appeal  was  met  by  the  reply  that  the  Letter  of  Majesty 
did  not  permit  them  to  build  churches  on  the  lands  of 
ecclesiastics.     This  answer  excited    great    indignation  in 
Bohemia ;    and    a  rumour  was   got  up   that   it  had    not 
come  from  the  Emperor,  but  had  been  written  in  Prague. 
On   May  23,    161 8,  a  number  of  Protestants,  headed  by 
Count  Thurn,  marched  to  the  Council  Hall  of  the  Royal 
Castle,  and  demanded  to  be  told  the  real  facts.      When 
the   councillors   hesitated,  two  of  them,  with  the  private 
secretary,   were   seized,   and    thrown   out   of  the  window. 
The  Protestants  then  took  possession  of  the  Royal  Castle, 
drove  the  Jesuits  out  of  Bohemia,  and  appointed  a  council 
of  thirty  nobles  to  carry  on  the  government.      Matthias 
would  have  made  peace  ;  but  Ferdinand  refused  to  do  so, 
and   began   at   once  to  gather  troops.      The   Union  sent 
Count  Mattsjcld,  a  distinguished  soldier,  with  3,000  men  to 
aid    the    Bohemians.      They    themselves,    led    by   Count 
Thurn,  actively  prepared  to  defend  their  rights.      In  the 
midst  of  these  disturbances,  Matthias  died  in  1619. 

8.  Ferdinand  II.     War  with  Bohemia.— The  Bohemians 
refused  to  accept  Ferdinand  as  King,  and  chose  Frederick  V 


152 


THE  THIRTY  YEARS'  WAR. 


[chap 


of  the  Palatinate.  They  did  so,  partly  because  the  young 
prince  was  believed  to  be  bold  and  generous,  partly  because 
they  hoped  his  father-in-law,  Jaines  I.  of  England,  would 
help  them  in  the  approaching  struggle.  Meanwhile 
Ferdinand  went  to  Frankfurt,  and  there  had  his  wish 
gratified  by  being  elected  and  crowned  Emperor.  He 
resolved  utterly  to  crush  Protestantism  in  Bohemia,  and 
afterwards  to  attack  it  in  all  parts  of  the  Empire.  On  his 
way  to  Frankfurt  he  had  visited  Maximilian^  Duke  of 
Bavaria,  and  come  to  an  understanding  with  him  that,  if 
the  Union  should  support  Bohemia,  the  Catholic  League 
would  take  arms  on  the  side  of  the  Emperor.  He  also 
obtained  promises  of  help  from  Spain.  The  young  King 
of  Bohemia,  instead  of  putting  forth  every  effort  to 
meet  his  great  enemy,  wasted  his  time  and  energies  in 
frivolous  amusements,  and  wantonly  offended  the  religious 
scniples  of  many  of  his  subjects.  The  Protestant  States 
of  Germany  acted  with  shameful  indifference.  The  Elector 
of  Saxony  was  easily  bought  over  by  the  Emperor ; 
and  the  Union,  seeing  that  the  war  was  likely  to  be  a 
fierce  one,  agreed  to  disarm  before  the  struggle  began. 
Thus  the  Bohemians  had  to  trust  to  themselves.  In 
1620  they  were  defeated  in  a  great  battle  on  the  Weissen- 
bergy  near  Prague,  by  Count  Tilly,  Duke  Maximilian's 
general,  an  able  soldier  troubled  with  few  scruples  as 
to  the  means  by  which  he  gained  his  ends.  Frederick, 
who  was  called  the  Winter  A'inj^j  fled  with  his  family.  He 
was  put  to  the  ban  of  the  Empire,  and  his  lands  were  held 
by  Spanish  troops.  Ferdinand  dealt  with  Bohemia  as 
hardly  any  land  has  been  treated  in  modern  times.  Many 
of  the  Protestant  leaders  were  put  to  death  ;  lands  were 
confiscated  ;  the  Protestant  clergy  were  banished  ;  and  in 
the  end  every  form  of  worship  except  the  Catholic  was 
forbidden.    Bohemia  quite  changed  its  character.    It  ceased 


" 


XIV.] 


ALBERT  VON  WALLENSTEIN, 


153 


to  be  a  seat  of  learning,  and  its  commerce  was  ruined.  An 
attempt  was  made  to  treat  Upper  Austria  with  the  same 
severity.  In  1626  a  Peasants'  Insurrection  took  place  there, 
and  was  put  down  with  difficulty  by  the  Austrian  and 
Bavarian  troops. 

9.  Progress  of  the  war. — The  war  was  continued,  on  the 
part  of  the  Protestants,  by  Count  Mafisfeld,  Christian  of 
Anhalt,  and  other  nobles,  with  bands  of  troops  made  up  of 
men  who  often  cared  less  for  the  objects  of  the  war  than  for 
the  opportunities  of  plunder  which  it  afforded.     Tilly  was 
defeated  in  1622,  but  he  afterwards  overthrew  both  Mans- 
feld  and  Christian,  and  obliged  them  for  a  time  to  disband 
their  forces.    In  1622  the  Union  was  broken  up  ;  and  in  the 
following  year  the   Emperor  attached   Duke    Maximilian 
more   closely  to  himself  by  raising  him  to   the   electora 
dignity  which  the  Elector  Palatine  was  supposed  to  have 
forfeited.     Surrounded  by  powerful  friends,  and  with   his 
enemies  crushed,  the  Emperor  appeared  to  have  overcome 
/U  obstacles  ;  but  in  reality  the   Thirty   Years'  War  had 
begun,  and  it  was  to  prove  one  of  the  most  fearful  struggles 

in  history. 

10.  Albert  von  Wallenstein.— Other  Protestants  besides 
those  of  Germany  now  began  to  watch  Ferdinand  with 
alaniL  Christian  IV.  of  Denmark  tried  to  unite  the  northern 
powers  against  him  ;  but  the  scheme  failed,  mainly  through 
the  indecision  of  James  I.  of  England.  Count  Mansfeld, 
Christian  of  Anhalt,  and  others,  were,  however,  sufficiently 
supported  to  enable  them  once  more  to  take  the  field  ;  and 
they  were  powerfully  aided  by  Christian  IV.,  who  was 
placed  at  the  head  of  the  army  of  the  Circle  of  Lower 
Saxony.  Up  to  this  time  the  Emperor's  troops  had  done 
little  in  the  war.  It  had  been  carried  on  almost  solely  by 
the  army  of  the  Catholic  League,  led  by  Tilly.  Ferdinand 
was  anxious  to  raise  an  Imperial  force,  but  was  too  poor  to 


'54 


THE  THIRTY  YEARS'  WAR, 


[chap. 


XIV.] 


GUSTA  VUS  ADOLPHUS, 


157 


\ 


do  so.  At  last  a  wealthy  nobleman,  Albert  von  Wallenstein^ 
came  forward,  and  offered  to  gather  an  army  on  condition 
that  he  should  have  the  supreme  command.  The  Emperor 
accepted  his  services,  stipulating  that  the  men  should  be 
paid,  not  from  the  Imperial  revenues,  but  by  the  plunder  of 
conquered  lands.  Wallenstein  soon  had  at  his  command 
an  army  of  30,000  men.  With  these  he  attacked  Count 
Mansfeld  in  1627  at  Dessau,  and  defeated  him.  Mansfeld 
died  soon  afterwards.  Christian  of  Anhalt  died  in  the 
same  year  ;  and  the  Danish  King  was  routed  at  Lutter  by 
Tilly  with  the  army  of  the  League.  Wallenstein  pursued 
Christian  IV.,  who  was  compelled  to  ask  for  peace.  The 
two  victorious  generals  then  overran  Holstein  and  Mecklen- 
burg. Wallenstein  was  made  Duke  of  the  latter  State,  and 
probably  intended  to  win  over  the  Hansa  towns,  partly  by 
bribery,  partly  by  force,  to  the  Imperial  side,  so  that  Austria 
should  be  as  great  by  sea  as  by  land.  For  this  purpose  he 
tried  to  make  himself  master  of  Stralsimd;  but  the  brave 
town  held  out,  and  Wallenstein  had  to  retire  after  having 
suffered  great  loss.  Peace  was  finally  concluded  with 
Christian  at  Ltibeck  in  1629. 

11.  The  Edict  of  Restitution. — In  spite  of  the  check 
received  at  Stralsund,  the  Emperor  now  seemed  to  have 
reached  almost  the  summit  of  his  wishes.  Nearly  all  Ger- 
many appeared  to  be  in  his  power.  He  took  advantage  of 
his  position  to  issue  an  edict  called  the  Edict  of  Restitutioji 
Two  archbishopricks,  twelve  bishopricks,  and  other  ecclesi- 
astical lands  had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  Protestants 
since  the  Treaty  of  Passau.  By  the  Edict  of  Restitution, 
Ferdinand  decreed  that  all  these  should  be  given  back  to 
the  Catholic  Church.  This  did  not  contradict  the  letter  of 
the  Passau  Treaty ;  but  it  was  felt  by  all  Protestants  to  be 
an  act  of  gross  tyranny. 

12.  Dismissal   of  Wallenstein.       Gustavus  Adolphus. — 


Duke  Maximilian  and  other  princes  were  jealous  of  Walitein 
stein,  and  urged  the  Emperor  to  remove  him  from  his' 
command.     The  Emperor  long  hesitated  ;  but  as  he  felt  he 
must  not  seriously  offend  the  League,  he  at  last,  in  1630, 
yielded.     Part  of  Wallenstein's  army  was  broken  up,  and 
part  placed  under  Tilly.     The  step  was  a  fatal   one,  for 
just  at  this  time,  when  the  Protestant  cause  seemed  mined, 
it  was  about  to  be  defended  by  a  new  and  powerful  friend. 
This  was  Gustavus  Adolphus,  King  of  Sweden.     He  was 
a  Protestant,  and  wished  to  help  those  who  shared  his  belief 
He  had  also  private  injuries  to  revenge.       Besides  these 
reasons  for  joining  in  the  struggle,  there  is  ground  to  believe 
that  Gustavus,  who  was  of  an  ambitious  nature,  wished  to 
conquer  territory  in  Germany,  so  that  he  might  be  able  to 
offer  himself  for  election  to  the  Imperial  throne  after  the 
death  of  Ferdinand.     In  the  summer  of  1630,  some  months 
before  the  dismissal  of  Wallenstein,  he  landed  in  the  island 
of  Rugen  with  an  army  of  1 5,000  men.     Many  Protestants 
hailed  him  as  a  possible  deliverer ;  but  the  princes  as  a  rule 
received  him  coldly.     They  feared  the  Emperor  ;  and  they 
suspected  the  designs  of  Gustavus  himself     He  compelled 
the  Duke  of  Poinerania  to  form  an  alliance  with  him  ;  but 
the  Electors  of  Saxony  and  Brandenburg  held  off.     In  1631 
Magdeburg,  which  resisted  the  Edict   of  Restitution   and 
would  gladly  have  joined  Gustavus,  was  taken  by  Tilly, 
and  destroyed.     The  cruelty  of  the  conquerors  in  sacking 
this  city  has  probably  never  been  surpassed.     This  alarmed 
the   Elector  of  Saxony,   and  the   policy  of  the  Emperor 
soon  made  him  a  declared  enemy.     Tilly,   by  the   Em- 
peror's  commands,    after  the    destruction   of   Magdeburg, 
entered  Saxony  for  the  purpose  of  putting  an  end  to  an 
alliance  which   some   Protestant   princes    had   formed  at 
Leipzig  e.arlier  in  the  year.    The  Elector  now  at  once  joined 
GusUvus  Adolphus  ;  and  a  battle  was  fought  at  Breiienfeld. 


'54 


THE  THIRTY  YEARS'   WAR, 


[chap. 


\ 


do  so.  At  last  a  wealthy  nobleman,  Albert  von  W aliens tcin^ 
came  forward,  and  offered  to  gather  an  army  on  condition 
that  he  should  have  the  supreme  command.  The  Emperor 
accepted  his  services,  stipulating  that  the  men  should  be 
paid,  not  from  the  Imperial  revenues,  but  by  the  plunder  of 
conquered  lands.  Wallenstein  soon  had  at  his  command 
an  army  of  30,000  men.  With  these  he  attacked  Count 
Mansfeld  in  1627  at  Dessau,  and  defeated  him.  Mansfeld 
died  soon  afterwards.  Clhistian  of  Anhalt  died  in  the 
same  year  ;  and  the  Danish  King  was  routed  at  Lulter  by 
Tilly  with  the  army  of  the  League.  Wallenstein  pursued 
Christian  IV.,  who  was  compelled  to  ask  for  peace.  The 
two  victorious  generals  then  overran  Holstein  and  Mecklen- 
burg. Wallenstein  was  made  Duke  of  the  latter  State,  and 
probably  intended  to  win  over  the  Hansa  towns,  partly  by 
bribery,  partly  by  force,  to  the  Imperial  side,  so  that  Austria 
should  be  as  great  by  sea  as  by  land.  For  this  purpose  he 
tried  to  make  himself  master  of  Stralsund;  but  the  brave 
town  held  out,  and  Wallenstein  had  to  retire  after  having 
suffered  great  loss.  Peace  was  finally  concluded  with 
Christian  at  Liibeck  in  1629. 

11.  The  Edict  of  Restitution.— In  spite  of  the  check 
received  at  Stralsund,  the  Emperor  now  seemed  to  have 
reached  almost  the  summit  of  his  wishes.  Nearly  all  Ger- 
many apjDcarcd  to  be  in  his  power.  He  took  advantage  of 
his  position  to  issue  an  edict  called  the  Edict  of  Restitution 
Two  archbishopricks,  twelve  bishopricks,  and  other  ecclesi- 
astical lands  had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  Protestants 
since  the  Treaty  of  Passau.  By  the  Edict  of  Restitution, 
Ferdinand  decreed  that  all  these  should  be  given  back  to 
the  Catholic  Church.  This  did  not  contradict  the  letter  of 
the  Passau  Treaty  ;  but  it  was  felt  by  all  Protestants  to  be 
an  act  of  gross  tyranny. 

12.  Dismissal  of  Wallenstein.       Gustavus  Adolphus.— 


XIV.] 


GUSTAVUS  ADOLPHUS. 


Duke  Maximilian  and  other  princes  were  jealous  of  Wan 
stein,   and   urged   the  Emperor  to   remove   him  from  his 
command.    The  Emperor  long  hesitated  ;  but  as  he  felt  he 
must  not  seriously  offend  the  League,  he  at  last,  in  1630, 
yielded.     Part  of  Wallenstein's  army  was  broken  up,  and 
part  placed  under  Tilly.     The  step  was  a  fatal   one,  for 
just  at  this  time,  when  the  Protestant  cause  seemed  mined, 
it  was  about  to  be  defended  by  a  new  and  powerful  friend. 
This  was  Gi4stavus  Adolphus,  King  of  Sweden.     He  was 
a  Protestant,  and  wished  to  help  those  who  shared  his  belief. 
He  had  also  private  injuries  to  revenge.       Besides  these 
reasons  for  joining  in  the  struggle,  there  is  ground  to  believe 
that  Gustavus,  who  was  of  an  ambitious  nature,  wished  to 
conquer  territory  in  Germany,  so  that  he  might  be  able  to 
offer  himself  for  election  to  the  Imperial  throne  after  the 
death  of  Ferdinand.     In  the  summer  of  1630,  some  months 
before  the  dismissal  of  Wallenstein,  he  landed  in  the  island 
of  RUgen  with  an  army  of  15,000  men.     Many  Protestants 
hailed  him  as  a  possible  deliverer ;  but  the  princes  as  a  rule 
received  him  coldly.     They  feared  the  Emperor  ;  and  they 
suspected  the  designs  of  Gustavus  himself.     He  compelled 
the  Duke  of  Pomerania  to  form  an  alliance  with  him  ;  but 
the  Electors  of  Saxony  and  Brandenburg  held  off.     In  163 1 
Magdeburg,  which  resisted  the  Edict   of  Restitution   and 
would  gladly  have  joined  Gustavus,  was  taken  by  Tilly, 
and  destroyed.     The  cruelty  of  the  conquerors  in  sacking 
this  city  has  probably  never  been  surpassed.     This  alarmed 
the   Elector  of  Saxony,   and  the   policy  of  the  Emperor 
soon   made  him  a   declared   enemy.     Tilly,   by  the   Em- 
peror's  commands,   after  the    destruction   of   Magdeburg, 
entered  Saxony  for  the  purpose  of  putting  an  end  to  an 
alliance  which   some   Protestant   princes    had   formed  at 
Leipzig  earlier  in  the  year.    The  Elector  now  at  once  joined 
GusUvus  Adolphus  ;  and  a  battle  was  fought  at  Dreitenfcld. 


THE  THIRTY  YEARS'  WAR. 


[chap. 


Saxons  fled  ;  but  the  Swedes  fought  with  great  bravery, 
^md  defeated  Tilly,  cutting  off  his  best  troops. 

13.  Gustavus  Adolphus  at  Munich. — The  Protestants 
were  now  as  hopeful  as  the  Catholics  had  been.  Gustavus 
allowed  the  Saxons  to  take  possession  of  Bohemia,  and 
himself  marched  southwards  towards  Bavaria.  Everywhere 
the  Protestants  received  him  with  enthusiasm.  Tilly,  who 
had  brought  together  a  second  army,  tried  to  keep  him  from 
crossing  the  Lech  ;  but  the  old  general,  who  had  won  so 
many  victories,  was  again  defeated,  and  so  severely  wounded 
that  he  died  a  few  days  afterwards.  Gustavus  had  held  court 
in  Frankfurt  Munich  now  opened  its  gates  to  him  ;  and 
he  took  possession  of  Maximilian's  palace.  The  Duke 
himself  fled  to  Regensburg. 

14.  Death  of  Gustavus  Adolphus. — The  fmits  of  all  the 
Emperor's  effort  and  ambition  seemed  now  about  to  be 
snatched  from  him.  There  was  only  one  way  in  which  he 
could  hope  to  save  them.  That  was  by  an  appeal  to 
Wallenstein.  The  great  general  agreed  to  raise  an  army, 
but  on  condition  that  it  should  be  placed  wholly  under  his 
control.  About  40,000  men  immediately  flocked  to  his 
standard.  In  1632  he  took  Prague,  and  easily  drove  the 
Saxons  from  Bohemia.  He  then  set  out  for  Niimberg,  but 
Gustavus  reached  it  before  him,  and  took  up  a  strong  posi- 
tion. Wallenstein  avoided  a  battle,  and  at  last,  after  in 
vain  trying  to  force  the  enemy's  position,  Gustavus  went 
back  to  Bavaria.  The  Imperial  general  next  marched 
towards  Saxony.  Gustavus  followed  him,  and  on  November 
16,  1632,  the  battle  of  Liitzen  was  fought.  The  Swedes 
gained  the  victory  ;  but  it  was  dearly  bought,  for  the  King 
himself  was  slain. 

15.  Murder  of  Wallenstein.— After  the  death  of  Gustavus 
Adolphus,  Axel  Oxensiiern^  the  Swedish  Chancellor,  under- 
took to  carry  on  the  war.     Under  him  were  the  Swedish 


XIV.] 


PROGRESS  OF  THE  WAR, 


157 


•t 


/ 


General  Horn,  and  Bernard,  Duke  of  Weimar.  Wallenstein 
now  lost  a  great  deal  of  time,  and  laid  himself  open  to  many 
suspicions  on  the  part  of  the  Emperor's  supporters.  At 
last,  in  1634,  he  was  removed  a  second  time  from  his 
command,  and  murdered.  The  Emperor  rewarded  the 
murderers,  and  issued  a  document  setting  forth  all  the 
deeds  and  purposes  of  which  Wallenstein  was  accused. 

16.  Treaty  of  Axel  Oxenstiern  with  Cardinal  Richelieu. — 
The  Imperial  forces  were  now  commanded  by  Ferdinaiid, 
the  Emperor's  son,  and  King  of  the  Romans.  A  battle  was 
fought  at  Nordlingen  in  1634,  in  which  the  Swedes  were 
defeated,  and  General  Horn  was  made  prisoner.  After  this 
the  Elector  of  Saxony  made  peace  at  Prague  with  the 
Emperor,  and  other  princes  did  the  like.  The  war  would 
probably  have  ended  altogether,  for  all  parties  were  longing 
for  peace ;  but  Cardinal  Richelieu,  who  had  long  watched 
the  struggle,  and  who  thought  this  a  good  opportunity 
of  humbling  the  house  of  Austria,  had  already  concluded 
a  treaty  with  Oxenstiern,  by  which  France  was  to  receive 
German  territory  in  return  for  aid  in  carrying  on  the  war. 
Duke  Bernard,  who  thus  entered  the  French  service, 
collected  a  fine  army  in  the  Rhine  country,  while  the 
Swedish  General  Baner  fought  in  Saxony  and  Thuringia. 

17.  Death  of  Ferdinand  II.  Progress  of  the  War.— Fer- 
dinand II.  died  in  1637,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  son 
Ferdinand  III.,  who  was  compelled  to  continue  the  war, 
not  to  secure  the  ends  for  which  it  was  begun,  but  to  save 
as  much  as  possible  from  the  Swedes  and  the  French.  In 
1639  Duke  Bernard  suddenly  died,  having  several  times 
defeated  the  Catholic  army.  General  Baner  was  also 
successful  against  the  Imperialists  ;  and  after  him  Tor- 
stenson,  and  later  on  W ran  gel,  led  the  Swedes  to  manv 
brilliant  victories.  Generals  Turenne  and  ComU  carried  on 
the  war  on  behalf  of  France. 


158 


THE  THIRTY  YEARS'   WAR. 


[CHAP. 


18.  The  Peace  of  Westphalia,— Negotiations  for  peace  seri- 
ously began  in  1643.  If  the  matter  had  depended  on  Gei-many 
alone,  all  difficulties  wruld  soon  have  been  overcome ;  but 
France  and  Sweden  both  claimed  to  be  rewarded  for  their 
share  in  the  struggle,  and  their  demands  were  so  great  that 
conferences  went  on  from  year  to  year  without  anything 
being  done.     The  negotiations  with  the  Swedes  were  carried 
on  at  Ostiabriickj  those  with  the  French  at  Miinster.  At  last, 
on  October  24,  1648,  peace  was  concluded.     This  peace  is 
known  as   The  Peace  of  Westphalia,     The  war  which  it 
ended  was  one  of  the  most  terrible  that  Europe  has  ever 
seen.     Half,  if  not  two-thirds,  of  the  population  of  Germany 
had  perished  while  it  was  going  on.     Every  part  of  the 
country  had  been  laid  waste  ;  many  cities  were  in  ruins  ; 
trade  had  almost  died  out     In  1630  the  Hansa  League  was 
virtually  broken  up  on  the  ground  that  the  towns  composing 
it  could  no  longer  pay  the  expenses  which  connexion  with 
the  League  involved.    In  spite  of  all  this,  the  Peace  of  West- 
phalia was  liked  by  no  party  in  Germany.  The  Lutherans  and 
Calvinists  received  the  same  freedom  of  conscience  as  the 
Catholics  ;  all  Church  property  which  the  Protestants  had 
possessed  in  1624  was  to  remain  in  their  hands  ;  and  Pro- 
testants and  Catholics  were  to  be  equally  represented  in  the 
Imperial   Chamber.      These   concessions  so   irritated   the 
Catholics  that  Pope    Innocent  X,    protested    against    the 
Peace  of  Westphalia  through  his  legate,  and  afterwards  issued 
a  bull  declaring  it  void.     On  the  other  hand,  the  Protestants 
lost  Bohemia.     Both  there  and  in  his  hereditary  Austrian 
dominions  the  Emperor  refused  to  tolerate  Protestantism. 
While  the  religious  parties  of  Germany  had  their  own  causes 
of  complaint  against  the  Peace  of  Westphalia,  it  brought 
heavy  losses  on  the  country  as  a  whole.     France  was  con- 
firmed in  her  possession  of  the  Lorraine  bishopricks,  Metst 
Tout,  and  Verdu  «,  and  received  as  much  oiElsass  as  belonged 


XIV.] 


THE  PEACE  OF  WESTPHALIA. 


15s 


to  Austria.     By  these  acquisitions,  and  by  the  destruction 
of  various  fortifications  on  the  Upper  Rhine,  France  secured 
to  herself  an  open  passage  into  Germany.     In  addition  to 
the  towns  of  Wismar  and  Stettin,  Sweden  received  Western 
Pomerania,  and  the  Sees  of  Bremen  and  Verden—X&rxWorf 
which  placed  in  her  hands  the  most  important  points  on  the 
coasts  of  the  Baltic  and  the  North  Sea.      She  was  also 
promised  the  sum  of  five  million  thalers.      In  virtue  of  the 
territory  ceded  to  Sweden,  she  became  a  member  of  the 
German  Diet ;  but  the  lands  which  France  received  were 
wholly  severed  from  Germany.     Both  France  and  Sweden 
obtained  the  right  of  interfering  in  the  affairs  of  Germany 
whenever  they  thought,  or  affected  to  think,  that  the  provi- 
sions of  the  treaties  of  Osnabruck  and  Munster  were  endan- 
gered.   Switzerland  and  the  United  Provinces  were  already 
practically  independent  of  the  Empire  ;  but  their  independ- 
ence was  now  expressly  acknowledged.     Within  Germany 
itself  some  changes  were  effected.     The  Elector  of  Bavaria 
kept  the  Upper  Palatinate ;  but  Charles  Lewis,  the  son  of 
Frederick  V.,  was  restored  to  the  rest  of  his  hereditary  terri- 
tories, and  an  eighth  electoral  title  was  created  for  his  family. 
The  Elector  of  Brandenburg  received  East  Pomerania,  the 
archbishoprick    of   Magdeburg,    and    the    bishopricks    of 
Halberstadt,  Mindcn,  and  Kamin.      Concessions  were  also 
made  to    Mecklenburg,    Hessen-Cassel,    and    Brunswick- 

Luneburg. 

19.  Condition  of  the  Empire.— The  Empire  now  ceased 
to  exist,  except  in  name,  even  in  Germany.  As  we  have 
seen,  the  tendency  of  the  Reformation  was  to  strengthen 
the  independence  of  the  princes,  both  Catholic  and 
Protestant  By  the  peace  of  Westphalia  the  Emperor 
fully  recognised  that  independence.  They  were  even  to 
have  the  right  of  concluding  treaties  of  alliance  with  foreign 
States,  if  not  directed  against  Emperor  or  Empire.    The 


i6o 


THE  THIRTY  YEARS'  WAR, 


[chap. 


authority  of  the  Aulic  Council,  which  was  entirely  subject 
to  the  Emperor,  was  made  merely  nominal    The  power 
r.f  passing  and  interpreting  laws,  of  making  war  or  peace,  of 
raising  troops-these,  and  other  rights  relating  to  the  Em- 
pire or  Confederation  as  a  whole,  were  now  to  belong,  not 
to  the  Emperor,  but  to  the  Diet     Even  the  Diet,  however, 
was  to  have  no  great  power.     In  1654  it  was  made  a  per- 
manent body ;  and  it  became  more  and  more  famous  for 
its  formality  and  trifling,  and  for  the  solemnity  and  pomp 
with  which  it  managed  to  do  nothing.     Difficulties  con- 
nected with  religion  were  not  henceforth  to  be  decided  by  a 
vote  of  the  Diet,  but  by  negotiations  between  the  States  in 
which  the  difficulties  arose. 

20.     International   Law.— There  was   one   good   result 

which  sprang  from  the  division  of  Germany  into  a  vast 

number  of  petty  independent  States.     It  became  necessary 

that  there  should  be  some  code  which  should  protect  the 

weaker    States    from    the    stronger.      Such    a    code    was 

gradually  formed,  and  it  worked  so  well  that,   although 

there  was  practically  no  central  authority  to  keep  down  the 

unruly,  the  weakest  prince  felt  himself  safe  even  when 

his  nearest  neighbour  was   a  powerful  Elector  or  King. 

The   system  which  thus  regulated  the  intercourse  of  the 

States  of  Germany  gradually  became  the  foundation  for  a 

system  of  International  Law. 

21.  Literature  and  Science.— German  literature  and 
science  were  not  altogether  crushed  by  the  horrors  of  the 
Thirty  Years'  War.  John  Kepler,  one  of  the  most 
illustrious  of  modern  astronomers,  and  Otto  von  Guerike, 
the  inventor  of  the  air-pump,  both  belong  to  this  period. 
Jacob  Boehm,  a  half-mystical  thinker,  wrote  works  which 
have  exercised  considerable  influence  on  later  German 
philosophy.  Martin  Opitz,  a  writer  who  strove  to  main- 
tain the  purity  of  the  German  language,  was  the  founder  of 


XIV.] 


SUPERSTITIONS, 


161 


what  is  called  the  First  Silesian  School  of  Poets.  To  this 
School  belonged  the  versatile  Paul  Fleniming.  Paul 
Gerkardt  takes  his  place  among  the  best  religious  poets 
of  Germany. 

22.  Superstitions. — In  spite  of  the  Reformation,  and  of 
the  schools  that  the  Reformers  had  founded,  the  majority  of 
the  German  people  were  still  ignorant  and  superstitious. 
Even  yet  many  eagerly  sought  for  the  philosopher's  stone, 
and  a  belief  in  astrology  was  very  general.  Witchcraft  was 
almost  universally  believed  in,  and  nothing  was  more 
common  than  for  women  to  be  tortured  and  burned  as 
witches.  Good  men  occasionally  protested  against  this 
barbarous  custom  ;  but  it  continued  even  into  the  eighteenth 
century.  It  finally  gave  way  only  before  the  light  of  ad- 
vancing scienca 


i 


CHAPTER  XV. 

WARS  WITH  FRANCE. 

Abolition  of  most  provincial  Diets;  bad  government  of  tig  princes; 
decay  of  the  free  towns  (l) — weak  character  of  Leopold  I.  ;  the 
Great  Elector;  war  with  Lewis  XIV.;  the  battle  of  Fehrbellin ; 
the  peace  of  Nimwegen  (2) — robbery  of  German  territory  by  Lewis 
XIV.:  Strassburg  seized  i'^) — rebellion  of  Hungary ;  the  Turks 
make  war  on  the  Emperor;  Vienna  besieged;  the  crmvn  of  Hun- 
gary made  hereditary  {4) — new  war  with  France :  brutality  of 
the  French  soldiers;  coalition  of  European  Powers  against  France; 
the  Peace  of  Ryswick  (5) — ninth  Electorate;  George  Lewis^  Duke 
of  Brunswick  and  Liineburg^  becomes  King  of  England ;  Au- 
gustus II.  of  Saxony  elected  King  of  Poland  (6) — Frederick^ 
Elector  of  Brandenburg^  crowned  King  of  Prussia  (7) — the  war 
of  the  Spanish  Succession  ;  the  Electors  of  Bavaria  and  Koln 
pin  France ;  the  battles  oj  Donauwerth  aiui  Blenheim  (8) — 
yoseph  I. ;  victory  oJ  Prince  Eugene  at  Turin;  battles  of  Ouden- 
arde  and  Malplaquet ;  demands  of  t/ie  allies  (9) — Charles  VI.; 
the  treaties  of  Utrecht ^  Rastatt^  and  Baden  (10) — the  Pragmatic 
Sanction  ;  war  with  the  Turks ;  war  with  France ;  Lorraine 
given  up  to  Stanislaus  Leszczynski ;  it  afterwards  falls  into  the 
hands  of  the  French  (11). 

I.  The  States  of  Germany. — Germany  was  now  broken 
up  into  a  large  number  of  States,  almost  independent 
of  the  nominal  head  of  the  Empire.  The  history  of  these 
States  is  for  a  long  time  very  uninteresting.  Most  of  the 
Diets  were  put  an  end  to,  and  those  which  continued 


[CH.  XV.] 


LEOPOLD  /. 


163 


'. 


to  exist  were  without  real  power.  The  princes  were  thus 
absolute  rulers  within  their  territories.  Each  had  his  own 
courts  of  justice,  his  own  hired  troops,  his  own  coinage, 
customs,  tolls,  and  taxes.  Most  of  them  were  very  bad 
rulers.  They  imitated  the  pomp  and  grandeur  of  the 
court  of  Lewis  XIV.  of  France,  and  in  order  to  keep  up 
their  extravagance  laid  heavy  taxes  on  their  subjects.  Thus 
trade,  instead  of  reviving  after  the  harm  done  to  it  by  the 
Thirty  Years'  War,  withered  more  and  more.  The  free 
cities,  no  longer  strengthened  by  their  combination  in 
Leagues,  prospered  no  better  than  the  principalities.  Many 
of  them  became  petty  oligarchies  ;  others  lost  their  freedom 
altogether,  and  were  made  subject  to  neighbouring  princes. 
2.  Leopold  L  The  Great  Elector. — Nothing  of  great  im- 
portance happened  in  the  last  years  of  Ferdinand  IIL's 
reign.  He  died  in  1657,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  son 
I^opold.  Lewis  XIV.  tried  hard  to  get  himself  elected  ; 
but  the  temporal  Electors  refused  to  be  bribed.  Leopold  was 
well-meaning,  but  very  weak  both  in  intellect  and  character 
This  was  the  more  unfortunate  for  Germany,  because  during 
his  whole  reign  he  had  in  Lewis  XIV.  a  crafty  and  am- 
bitious enemy,  who  lost  no  opportunity  of  enriching  himself 
at  the  expense  of  the  Empire.  When  Lewis  invaded  the 
Netherlands  in  1667,  he  met  with  no  resistance  from  any 
German  State,  and  by  the  Peace  of  Aachen^  in  1669,  com- 
pelled Spain  to  give  up  part,  of  the  country.  In  1672  he 
made  war  on  the  United  Provinces.  At  this  time  the  ablest 
prince  in  Germany  was  Frederick  William  of  Brandenburg^ 
usually  called  the  Great  Elector.  In  1657  he  had  con- 
cluded the  Treaty  of  Welau,  by  which  Prussia  was  de- 
clared independent  of  Poland;  and  in  1666  he  received, 
by  the  settlement  of  the  dispute  respecting  the  Jiilich-Cleve 
territory,  the  Duchy  of  Cleve^  and  the  counties  of  Mark 
and  Ravensberg.     Fearing  for  the  safety  of  these  lands  he 


i64 


WAI^S  WITH  FRANCE. 


[chap. 


joined  the  United  Provinces  against  Lewis.      The  Emperor 
and   King  Charles  of  Spain  did  the  like.     The  Austrian 
army  was  placed  under  Montecuaili,  a  famous  general. 
Leopold's  chief  councillor,  Prince  Lobkowitz,  was  bribed  by 
the  French,  and  he,  acting  with  the  spiritual  Electors  and 
the  Bishop  of  Miinster  (who  openly  sided  with  Lewis), 
hampered   the    army  so    much    that    in    1673    Frederick 
William    made    peace.      After    the    dismissal    of   Prince 
Lobkowitz,    Montecuculi   acted   with  more  freedom,  and 
gained  some  advantages   on  the   Lower   Rhine;  but  on 
the   Upper   Rhine  the   Austrians    were   defeated    by   the 
French  general    Tiirejine.      In    1674    Frederick    William 
again  joined  the  allies  against  France.     Denmark  took  the 
same  side  ;  but   Sweden   made  a  treaty  with  Lewis,  and 
invaded  Brandenburg.     Various  German  princes  also  dis- 
graced themselves  by  siding  with  the  French.     Frederick 
William  had  to  return  from  the  Rhine  and  defend  his  own 
country  against  the  Swedes,  and  in  1675  defeated  them  in  a 
great  battle  at  Fehrbellin.     After  this  he  conquered  the 
greater  part  of  Pomerania.      Meanwhile  the  war  on  the 
Rhine  went  on.     By  the  death  of  Turenne  the  French  lost 
ground  for  a  time ;  but,  on  the  whole,  the  allies  were  not 
successful.     In  1678  the  United  Provinces  and  Spain  made 
peace  with  France  at  Nimivegen,  and  next  year  the  Em- 
peror also  did  so.     He  had  to  give  up  Freiburg  in  Breisgau 
to  the   French  ;   and   Frederick  William  was  obliged  to 
restore  to  the  Swedes  nearly  all  his  conquests  in  Pomerania. 
The  Great  Elector,  however,  was  a  firm  and  wise  ruler,  and 
under  him  his  subjects  prospered  so  much  that  he  may  be 
looked  on  as  the  chief  founder  of  the  greatness  of  the  House 
of  HohenzoUern.     He  died  in  1688. 

3.  Strassburg  seized  by  Lewis  XIV.— During  the  years 
that  followed  the  Peace  of  Nimwegen,  Lewis  would  not 
leave  Germany  alone.     Pretending  that  the  treaties  by 


I 


XV.]      AUSTRIA,  HUNGARY,  AND  THE  TURKS,       165 

which  France  had  received  the  Austrian  lands  in  Elsass 
and  other  territories  had  given  up  not  only  these  possessions 
but  all  places  that  had  ever  been  united  to  them,  he  seized 
many  towns,  villages,  and  lands  on  both  sides  of  the  Rhine. 
To  give  an  appearance  of  fairness  to  his  proceedings,  he 
established  "  Chambers  of  Reunion"  to  decide  what  places 
lawfully  belonged  to  him.  A  great  outcry  was  raised  in 
Germany  against  these  robberies.  Lewis  consented  to 
have  the  whole  matter  laid  before  a  congress  in  Frankfurt ; 
but  nothing  came  of  its  discussions.  Of  all  German  towns, 
he  was  most  anxious  to  possess  Strassbtirg,  the  key  to  the 
whole  of  South  Germany.  In  1681,  when  many  of  the 
people  were  at  the  Frankfurt  fair,  he  suddenly  took  pos- 
session of  it,  having  before  gained  the  support  of  a  party 
within  the  city  by  means  of  bribes.  All  Germany  deplored 
the  loss  of  this  strong  and  beautiful  town.  It  remained  in 
the  hands  of  France  till  our  own  day. 

4,  Austria,  Hungary,  and  the  Turks. — The  Emperor 
might  at  last  have  been  roused  to  put  a  stop  to  the  robberies 
of  Lewis  ;  but  at  this  time  the  affairs  of  Hungary  demanded 
all  his  energies.  He  had  treated  the  Hungarian  Protestants 
with  so  much  harshness  that  at  length,  in  1678,  they  had  re- 
belled. Lewis,  although  he  persecuted  Protestants  in  his 
own  country,  helped  those  of  Hungary  against  their  King. 
Their  chief  allies,  however,  were  the  Turks,  who  were  also 
incited  by  Lewis  to  make  war  on  the  Emperor.  In  1683  a 
great  Turkish  army  marched  through  Hungary,  and  made 
for  Vienna.  The  Emperor  and  many  of  the  people  fled'; 
but  the  city  prepared  to  defend  itself,  and  for  several 
months,  under  Count  Riidiger  of  Stahrenberg^  it  baffled 
every  effort  of  the  besiegers.  It  was  nearly  overcome  when 
at  last  Duke  Charles  of  Lorraine^  and  John  Sobieski,  King 
of  Poland^  came  to  its  aid.  The  Turks  suddenly  took 
fright,  and  fled  without  ofiering  battle.     The  war  did  not 


i66 


IVAJ^S  WITH  FRANCE, 


[chap. 


come  to  an  end  ;  but  the  Turks  were  several  times  defeated, 
and  in  1699  they  made  peace  at  Carlowitz,  In  1687  the 
crown  of  Hungary,  which  had  before  been  nominally 
elective,  was  made  hereditary. 

5.  New  war  with  France.— In  1688  Lewis  made  war 
again  on  the  Emperor,  nominally  because  one  whom  he 
wished  to  be  made  Elector  of  Koln  was  not  accepted.  This 
time  the  Diet  declared  war  against  Lewis.  The  French 
army  entered  the  Palatinate,  and  by  the  King's  orders  was 
guilty  of  great  outrages.  The  country  was  overrun  by  wild 
troops,  and  the  people  begged  in  vain  for  mercy.  Their 
homes  were  set  on  fire,  and  they  themselves  were  either 
murdered  or  driven  almost  naked  into  France.  Heidelberg^ 
with  its  beautiful  castle,  and  many  flourishing  towns  on  the 
Rhine,  were  destroyed.  At  Speyer  the  soldiers  opened  the 
graves  of  the  Emperors,  stole  the  silver  coffins,  and  scattered 
the  bones  on  the  ground.  These  acts  roused  throughout 
Germany  so  much  hatred  and  anger  that  their  effects  can 
hardly  be  said  to  have  died  away  even  in  our  own  day. 
The  Emperor  bestirred  himself,  and  he  was  powerfully  sup- 
ported by  Frederick  of  Brandenburg,  the  Great  Electors 
son,  and  other  princes.  A  coalition  of  European  Powers,  in 
which  England,  under  William  of  Orange,  took  the  leading 
place,  was  formed.  The  great  struggle  which  followed 
belongs  more  to  general  European  history  than  to  that  of 
Germany.  For  seven  years  it  was  carried  on  by  sea  and 
land  with  varying  fortune.  At  length,  in  1697,  peace  was 
concluded  at  Ryswick  between  France,  England,  Spain, 
and  Holland.  The  Emperor  soon  followed  the  example 
of  his  allies.  France  kept  Sirassburg,  but  she  had 
to  give  up  Freiburg,  Breisach,  Philipsbnrg,  and  also 
places  that  had  been  annexed  on  the  giound  of  having 
formerly  belonged  to  Elsass.  A  promise  was  obtained  that 
the  Catholic  religion,  which  had  been  established  in  these 


XV.] 


THE  KINGDOM  OF  PRUSSIA, 


167 


places  by  France,  should  be  maintained  in  them  under  the 

Empire. 

6.  Two  German  princes  ascend  foreign  thrones. — Dur- 
ing the  progress  of  this  war,  the  Emperor  had  created  a 
ninth  electorate  in  favour  of  Ernst  August,  Duke  oi  Bruns- 
wick-Liincburg  or  Hanover.  The  College  of  Princes, 
jealous  of  this  elevation  of  one  of  their  number,  refused  to 
recognize  the  new  title  ;  but  George  Lewis,  who  succeeded 
his  father  in  1678,  was  universally  acknowledged  as  Elector 
in  1705.  In  1 7 14  he  ascended  the  English  throne,  as 
George  I.  Another  German  prince  who  ascended  a  foreign 
throne  about  this  time  was  Ajigustus  IL,  called  "The 
Strong,"  Elector  of  Saxony.  In  1697,  more  than  a  year 
after  the  death  of  Sobieski,  he  was  chosen  King  of  Poland. 
He  became  a  Catholic.  All  his  successors  in  Saxony  have 
been  Catholics ;  but  the  body  of  the  Saxon  people  were 
and  still  are  Protestants. 

7.  The  Elector  of  Brandenburg  becomes  King  of  Pnissia. 
—The  Electors  of  Hanover  and  Saxony  were  not  the  only 
German  princes  who  became  Kings.  The  Great  Elector 
was  succeeded  by  his  son  Frederick.  Frederick  was  a 
very  vain  man,  fond  of  pomp  and  show.  He  could  not 
become  King  of  Brandenburg,  because  as  Elector  of  that 
country  he  nominally  owed  allegiance  to  the  Emperor  ; 
but  as  Duke  of  Prussia  he  was  independent,  and  there 
was  nothing  to  hinder  his  becoming  Prussian  King  if 
he  could  obtain  from  the  Emperor  a  promise  to  recognize 
the  new  title.  In  ordinary  circumstances  the  Emperor 
would  probably  have  hesitated  to  sanction  so  great  an 
advance  on  the  part  of  one  who  was,  at  least  in  name,  a 
subject ;  but  he  knew  that  he  would  soon  be  involved  in 
another  war,  and  he  was  anxious  to  secure  as  much  support 
as  possible.  On  condition,  therefore,  that  Frederick  should 
aid  him  in  the  approaching  contest,  he  at  last  consented 


i6S 


PVA/^S  WITH  FRANCE, 


[CHAP. 


that  the  Prussian  Duchy  should  be  changed  into  a  kingdom. 
On  January  18,  1701,  and  in  circumstances  of  great  splen- 
dour, Frederick  was  crowned  King  at  Kdnigsberg.  Few 
thought  this  an  event  of  much  importance,  but  it  was 
followed  by  very  grave  consequences  both  for  Germany  and 

Europe. 

8.  The  War  of  the  Spanish  Succession.— The  struggle 
which  had  for  some  time  been  foreseen  was  the  famous 
War  of  the  Spanish  Succession.     Charles  II.  of  Spain  had 
named  the  son  of  the  Bavarian  Elector  as  his  successor ; 
but  the  young  prince  died  before  Charics  himself.     Charles 
died  on  November  11,  1700.     Shortly  before  his  death  he 
was  induced,  almost  against  his  own  will,  to  declare  as  his 
heir  Philip  of  Anjou,  the  grandson  of  Lewis  XIV.,  whose 
first  wife,  Maria  Theresa,  was  a  sister  of  Charles.     The 
Emperor  would   not   submit  to  this    arrangement.       His 
wife,  Margaret  Theresa,  was  also  a  sister  of  Charies ;  and 
she  had  not,  like  Maria  Theresa,  renounced  her  rights. 
He  therefore  claimed  the  Spanish  crown  for  his  son,  the 
Archduke  Charles.    The  Protestant  Powers  sided  with  the 
Emperor,  for  they  thought  that  if  the  thrones  of  France  and 
Spain  were  held  by  members  of  one  family  the  freedom  of 
the  whole  of  Europe  might  be  endangered.     The  Emperor 
had  at  this  time  a  general  of  high  military  genius.     This 
was  Francis  Eugene,  Prince  of  Savoy,  who  had  already 
been  made  field-marshal  for  distinguished  services.     In  the 
spring  of  1 701,  Eugene  crossed  the  Alps  with  an  Austrian 
arniy,  aided  by  Prussian  and  Hanoverian  troops,  in  order 
to  drive  the  French  out  of  Italy.     A  few  months  afterwards 
Austria  was  joined  by  England  and   Holland;    and  on 
October  2,  1702,  the  States  of  the  Empire  formally  declared 
war  against  France.    Maximilian  Etmnanuel,  the  Elector  of 
Bavaria,  and  his  brother,  the  Elector  of  Koln,  joined  France. 

\x\    1703  the   French  crossed  the   Rhine   and  joined  the 


XV.]    THE  WAR  OF  THE  SPANISH  SUCCESSION.    169 


Bavarian  troops.     Instead  of  marching  with  the   French 
into   Austria,  the   Elector  undertook   an   expedition  into 
Tyrol.      He  at  first  had  some  success  ;  but  the  Tyrolese 
soon  recovered  themselves,  and  drove  out  the  Bavarians, 
after  having  slain  large  numbers.     In   1704  Lord  Marl- 
borough, who  had  already  become  famous  from  his  doings 
in  the  Netherlands,  and  Prince  Eugene  united  their  forces 
at  Heilbronn.     A  battle  was  fought  near  Donauwerth  on 
July  2,  in  which  the   Elector  and   Marshal  Marsin  were 
defeated.     They  were  soon  joined  by  Marshal  Tallard;  and 
on  August  13,  a  still  greater  battle  took  place.    The  French 
and   Bavarians   took   up   their   position    near    Hochstddt, 
Tallard,  with  the  right   wing  of  the  French,   occupying 
Blenheim,  from  which  the  battle  has  received   its   name. 
Both  sides  fought  bravely ;  but  at  length  the  English  and 
Imperial  troops  succeeded  in  driving  back  the  enemy  at 
all  points.      No  fewer  than  20,000  French  and  Bavarians 
were  killed  or  drowned,  whilst  more  than  half  as  many 
more  surrendered  as  prisoners.    Amongst  the  prisoners  was 
Marshal  Tallard  himself.      The  result  of  this  battle  was 
that  the  seat  of  war  was  removed  in  great  part  from  Ger- 
many.    The  defeated  allies  rapidly  crossed  the  Rhine,  the 
Bavarian  Elector  taking  refuge  in  the  Netherlands,  whilst 
the    Imperialists    seized    Bavaria    and    the   neighbouring 
countries.     Marlborough  was  made  a  prince  of  the  Empire; 
and  he  became  as  well  known  and  popular  in  Gennany  a/ 
in  England. 

9.  Joseph  I. — In  1705  the  Emperor  Leopold  died.  He 
was  succeeded  by  his  son,  Joseph  I.  The  new  Emperor 
was  in  every  way  a  much  stronger  man  than  his  father,  and, 
unlike  him,  put  full  confidence  in  Prince  Eugene.  He 
continued  the  war  with  France,  and  had  also  to  put  down 
civil  wars  in  Hungary.  The  Austrians  had  treated  the 
Bavarians  with  so  much  harshness  that  the  peasantry  had 


I70 


lVA/i!S  WITH  FRANCE, 


[CHAi* 


XV.] 


THE  LAST  YEARS  OF  CHARLES  VL 


at  length  revolted.  After  an  obstinate  contest  this  insur- 
rection was  quelled,  and  the  Elector  and  his  brother  were 
put  to  the  ban  of  the  Empire.  Prince  Eugene  met  with 
serious  reverses  in  Italy;  but,  on  September  7,  1706,  he 
more  than  made  up  for  them  by  a  great  victory  over  the 
French  at  Turin.  This  success  was  largely  due  to  the 
Prussians,  who,  under  Prince  Leopold  of  Dessau,  formed  the 
left  wing  of  Eugene's  army.  Prince  Eugene  and  Marl- 
borough once  more  united  their  armies  in  the  Netherlands, 
and  gained  in  1708  and  1709  the  brilliant  victories  of 
Oudenarde  and  Malplaquet.  In  the  interval  between  these 
battles,  peace  would  probably  have  been  made  but  for  the 
demand  of  the  allies  that,  in  addition  to  other  concessions, 
Lewis  XIV.  should  aid  them  by  force  of  arms  in  driving  his 
grandson,  Philip  V.,  from  the  throne  of  Spain. 

10.  Charles  VI.  Treaties  of  Utrecht,  Rastatt,  and  Baden. 
—Joseph  I.  died  on  April  17,  171 1.  As  he  had  no  children, 
his  brother,  the  Archduke  Charles,  was  elected  his  suc- 
cessor. The  allies  were  as  unwilling  that  the  Spanish 
crown  should  belong  to  the  chief  of  the  house  of  Austria  as 
that  it  should  belong  to  the  Bourbons.  For  this,  and  other 
reasons  arising  out  of  the  home  politics  of  England,  Marl- 
borough was  recalled,  and  on  April  11,  17 13,  the  Peace  of 
Utrecht  was  signed.  Charles  VI.  complained  that  he  was 
betrayed  by  his  allies,  and  continued  the  war  ;  but  the  Im- 
perial troops  were  so  unsuccessful  in  the  following  campaign 
that  Austria  at  length  consented  to  come  to  terms,  and,  on 
March  7,  17 14,  the  Peace  of  Rastatt  was  concluded 
Austria  gave  up  her  claims  to  Spain  in  favour  of  Philip  V., 
but  received  the  Spanish  Netherlamis,  Naples,  Milan,  and 
Sardinia,  In  a  separate  treaty  which  was  concluded 
between  France  and  the  Empire  at  Baden  in  Aarau  on 
September  7,  17 14,  the  Empire  had  to  cede  to  France  the 
Imperial  fortress  of  Landau.     The  Electors  of  Bavaria  and 


171 


Koln  were  pardoned,  and  restored  to  all  their  titles   and 
possessions. 

II.  The  last  years  of  Charles  VL— Charles  had  no  son. 
In  1 713,  therefore,  he  drew  up,  in  favour  of  his  daughter, 
Maria  Theresa,  a  Pragmatic  Sanction,  a  law  providing 
that  the  Austrian  dominions,  in  case  the  male  line  should 
die  out,  should  be  heritable  by  the  female  line.  After  many 
efforts  he  at  last  induced  t-he  leading  European  Powers 
and  the  Empire  to  guarantee  this  arrangement.  In  a 
war  with  the  Turks,  carried  on  between  17 15  and  1718, 
Prince  Eugene  again  distinguished  himself.  By  the 
Peace  of  Passarowitz,  Austria  received  Belgrade  and  other 
towns  and  lands.  A  new  war  with  France  broke  out  in 
1733*  on  account  of  the  claim  of  Augustus  LIL,  Elector  of 
Saxony,  to  the  throne  of  Poland.  France  supported  Stanis- 
laus Leszczynski,  Lewis  XV.'s  father-in-law,  whom  a  con- 
siderable party  in  Poland  had  chosen  as  their  King.  The 
Emperor,  anxious  to  gain  the  support  of  the  Saxon  Elector 
to  the  Pragmatic  Sanction,  took  his  side.  The  result  of 
this  war  was  that,  besides  exchanging  Naples  and  Sicily  for 
Tuscany  and  Parma,  the  Emperor  had  to  give  up  the 
beautiful  province  of  Lorraijie  to  Leszczynski,  through  whom 
it  came  in  the  end  into  the  hands  of  the  French.  Charles 
died  on  October  21,  1740.  He  was  the  last  Emperor,  in 
the  male  line,  of  the  house  of  Habsburg. 


CHAPTER  XVL 


FREDERICK  THE  GREAT. 


The  Austrian  territories  claimed  by  Charles  Albert,  Elector  oj 
Bavaria ;  claims  of  Augustus  III.  of  Saxony ;  action  oj 
Frederick  II.  of  Prussia  {i)— Frederick  /,  King  of  Prussia  (2) 
— Frederick  WUliam  I.  of  Prussia  ;  his  character;  his  attention 
to  the  army ;  territory  won  by  him  (^)— youth  of  Frederick  II. 
of  Prussia  (4) — the  first  Silesia  n  war;  battle  of  Mohvitz  ($) — 
alliance  formed  agaittst  Maria  Theresa  ;  the  Elector  of  Bavaria 
croavned  Emperor ;  Maria  Theresa  supported  by  the  Hungarians ; 
battle  of  Czaslau  :  peace  with  Frederick  II.  (6) — successes  0/ 
Maria  Theresa;  death  of  Charles  VII.;  the  second  Stlesian 
war;  victories  of  Frederick  II.  ;  Peace  of  Dresden  [^1)— Franc  is  ^ 
Gratid  Duke  of  Tuscany^  elected  Emperor  ;  Peace  of  Aachen  (8) 
— home  government  of  Frederick  II.  {9) — hostility  of  the  Euro- 
pean powers  to  Frederick  II. ;  alliance  between  Prussia  and 
England,  and  between  Austria  and  France  (10) — Lginniug  of 
the  Seven  Years*  War ;  Frederick  II.  invades  Saxony ;  battle  of 
Lowositz  (11) — victory  of  the  Prussians  near  Prague  {i 2) — the 
battle  of  Kolin  ;  greater  part  of  Silesia  seized  by  the  Austrians  ; 
the  Convention  of  Closterseven  (13) — buttles  of  Rossbach  and 
Leuthen  (14) — battles  of  Crefeld,  Zorndorf  and  Hochkirchen 
(15) — battles  of  Minden  and  Kunersdorf  (16) — battles  of  Lieg- 
nitz  and  Torgau  {17) — mozetnents  of  Prince  Henry  and  Fre- 
derick in  jydt  {l^)— alliance  of  Frederick  II.  with  Peter  III.  oJ 
Russia ;  victory  over  the  Austrians ;  withdrawal  of  the  Rus- 
sians; siege  of Schweidnitz;  advantages  gained  by  Frederick  II.  (19) 
— Peace  of  Hubertusburg ;  results  of  the  Seven  Years'  IVar  {20) 


{CH.  XVL] 


FREDERICK  1.  OF  PRUSSIA, 


173 


— Joseph  II. ;  government  of  Frederick  II.  (21) — First  Pajiition 
of  Poland  {22) — the**  Potato  War"  (22)— death  of  Maria  Theresa; 
vigorous  government  of  Joseph  II.  ;  League  formed  hy  Frederick 
II.  (24) — death  of  Frederick  II. ;  Frederick  William  II.  (25) — 
Joseph  II,'' s  schemes;  his  death  (26) — Leopold  II,  (27). 


1.  The  claims  of  Maria  Theresa  to  the  Austrian  inheri- 
tance disputed. — On  the  death  of  her  father,  Maria  Theresa^ 
Qiiccn  of  Hungary,  took  possession  of  the  Austrian  terri- 
tories. But,  in  spite  of  the  solemn  promises  which  Charles 
VI.  had  received  in  favour  of  his  daughter,  she  found  that 
she  would  have  to  defend  her  rights.  Charles  Albert.,  the 
Elector  of  Bavaria,  a  descendant  of  the  eldest  daughter  of 
the  Emperor  Ferdinand  I.,  claimed  that  he  had  a  better 
title  to  the  Austrian  dominions  than  Maria  Theresa. 
Augustus  III.,  Elector  of  Saxony,  and  King  of  Poland,  also 
put  forth  claims  to  the  Austrian  inheritance.  Before  these 
princes  had  taken  any  practical  steps  in  support  of  their 
demands,  a  more  dangerous  rival  had  taken  up  arms  and 
actually  conquered  one  of  the  fairest  provinces  of  the  young 
princess.  This  was  Frederick  Il.y  who  had  recently  suc- 
ceeded to  the  throne  of  Prussia. 

2.  Frederick  I.,  King  of  Prussia. — Frederick  1.  of  Prussia 
died  in  17 1 3.  In  imitation  of  Lewis  XIV.,  he  had  lived  in 
a  style  of  great  splendour,  and,  by  his  reckless  extravagance, 
did  much  to  keep  his  people  poor.  Nevertheless,  he  did 
a  great  deal  for  Prussia.  By  raising  it  into  a  kingdom,  he 
secured  that  his  successors  should  always  have  an  induce- 
ment to  strengthen  and  extend  their  inheritance.  It  is  thus 
to  him  that  much  of  the  greatness  to  which  Prussia  after- 
wards rose  may  be  indirectly  traced.  Among  the  benefits 
directly  conferred  by  him  on  Prussia  were  the  University  of 
Halle  J  the  Academy  of  Sciences  in  Berlin,  and  various  other 
institutions  intended  to  promote  the  higher  culture. 


174 


FREDERICK  THE  GREA  T, 


[chap. 


3.  Frederick  William  I.  of  Prussia — Frederick  William  I. 
was  in  almost  all  respects  the  opposite  of  his  father.  He 
was  a  man  of  coarse  and  violent  nature,  given  to  fierce 
outbursts  of  anger.  Even  those  who  had  the  strongest 
claims  on  his  tenderness  he  treated  with  great  harshness,  if 
they  in  any  way  thwarted  his  plans.  He  had  a  contempt 
for  learning  and  learned  men,  and  was  fond  of  brutal 
practical  jokes.  One  of  the  good  points  of  his  character 
was  his  rigid  economy,  and  even  this  he  carried  too  far. 
No  King  ever  lived  in  plainer  style.  After  his  father's 
death  he  dismissed  a  host  of  Court  servants,  whom  he 
looked  on  as  mere  encumbrances.  His  evenings  were  spent 
in  what  he  called  his  tobacco-college.  His  ministers  and 
generals  met  him  in  a  plainly-furnished  room,  where,  amidst 
clouds  of  tobacco  smoke,  important  affairs  of  state  were 
discussed.  Although  arbitrary  and  tyrannical,  he  did 
much  to  add  to  the  power  of  Prussia.  The  result  of  his 
efforts  was  that,  at  the  time  of  his  death,  the  Prussian  army 
consisted  of  80,000  men,  fully  equipped  and  thoroughly 
organized.  He  took  especial  delight  in  the  "  Potsdam 
Guard,"  which  was  made  up  of  very  tall  men,  brought 
together,  at  great  expense,  from  all  parts  of  Europe.  His 
agents  even  kidnapped  giants  for  his  service  from  foreign 
countries.  He  died  on  May  31,  1740.  In  1720  he  had 
acquired  from  Sweden  the  city  of  Stettin,  the  southern  part 
of  Hither-Pomerania,  and  the  islands  of  Usedom  and 
Wollin. 

4.  Frederick  II.  of  Prussia. — Frederick  William  was 
succeeded  by  his  son  Frederick  II.,  usually  called  Frederick 
the  Great.  Frederick  was  twenty-eight  years  old  when  he 
became  King.  He  had  great  natural  abilities,  and  had 
acquired  considerable  culture.  His  youth  had  not  been 
a  happy  one.  His  tastes  were  so  different  from  those  of 
his    narrow-minded   father    that   the    latter    had    treated 


XVL 


THE  FIRST  SILESIAN  WAR. 


I7S 


It 


him  with  great  cruelty.  In  1730  ^e  ^^^d  formed  the 
Dlan  of  running  away  and  taking  refuge  with  his  aunt,  the 
Queen  of  England.  When  this  scheme  was  found  out, 
he  was  condemned  to  death  by  a  court  martial ;  and  it  was 
with  great  difficulty  that  the  King  was  prevented  from 
carrying  the  sentence  into  execution.  A  youth  named 
Kattc,  who  had  been  in  Frederick's  secret,  was  beheaded 
in  sight  of  the  young  prince  for  his  share  in  the  plot  The 
trying  experiences  of  Frederick's  youth  had  an  unhappy 
influence  on  his  character.  They  checked  the  growth  of 
kindly  feelings,  and  helped  to  make  him  in  later  life  bitter 

and  moody. 

5.  The   First  Silesian  War.— Frederick  had  no  sooner 
been  crowned  than  he  entered  in  earnest  upon  his  kingly 
duties.     From  the  beginning  his  government  was  thoroughly 
despotic.      He  consulted  no  one  as  to  the  measures  he 
ought  to  adopt ;  and  even  matters  of  small  importance  had 
to  be  laid  before  him.      The  duty  of  his  ministers  was 
simply  to  record  his  decisions,  and  to  see  that  they  were 
carried  out     When  Charies  VI.  died,  he  ought  to  have 
supported  Maria  Theresa  ;  but  he  had  long  wished  to  see 
the  little  kingdom  of  Prussia  extended,  and  the  present 
seemed  a  favourable  opportunity.      Some  old  renounced 
claims  on  various  Silesian  lands  served  as  a  pretext  for  war. 
He  sent  an  ambassador  to  Vienna,  offering  to  help  the 
young  Queen  if  she  would  give  up  the  desired  territory.   She 
indignantly  refused ;  but  Frederick  was  already  in  Silesia 
at  the  head  of  his  troops,  and  he  had  no  difficulty  in  driving 
out  the  Austrians,  who  were  unprepared  for  such  an  attack. 
In  the  following  spring  an  Austrian  army,  under  Marshal 
Neipperg,  marched  against  Frederick ;  and  a  battle  was 
fought   at  Molwitz.      The    King    showed    none    of   that 
presence    of    mind    which    he    afterwards    displayed    so 
often  ;  but  his  army  fought  bravely,  and,  under  the  skiL'"ul 


\ 


176 


FREDERICK  THE  GREA  T. 


[chap. 


leadership    of    Marshal    Schwerin^    gained    a    complete 
rictory. 

6.  Charles  VII.     Maria  Theresa  and  the  Hungfarians. — 
The  position  of  Maria  Theresa  now  appeared  desperate. 
Soon  after  the  battle  of  Molwitz,  an  alliance  was  formed 
against  her  by  France,  Prussia,  Spain,  Bavaria,  and  Saxony. 
A   French   army   entered    Germany    and   joined    that    of 
Bavaria,  whilst  the  Saxons  marched  into  Bohemia.     Vienna 
might  have  been  taken  ;  but  the  Bavarian  Elector,  who  had 
already    been  proclaimed    at    Linz    hereditary    Duke    of 
Austria,  was  jealous  of   the  progress  of   the   Saxons  in 
Bohemia,  and  suddenly  turned  aside  in  order  to  conquer 
that  country.     On   November  29  he  took  possession   of 
Prague,  and  was  at  once  declared  King  of  Bohemia.    Early 
in  1742  he  was  elected  Emperor  at  Frankfurt,  and  crowned 
as  Charles  VII.     But  the  fortunes  of  Maria  Theresa  had 
already  begun  to  brighten.     As  the  heiress  of  Charles  VI., 
she  was  Queen  of  Hungary.     She  appealed  to  the  loyalty  ot 
the  Hungarians,  appearing  in  the  Diet  with  her  infant  son, 
afterwards  Joseph  11.^  in  her  arms.     The  Hungarians  were 
touched  by  her  trust  in  them,  and  enthusiastically  promised 
to  aid  her.     An  army  was  forthwith  raised,  which  not  only 
reconquered  Austria  proper,  but  invaded  Bavaria,  and,  on 
the  very  day  on  which  Charles  VII.  was  crowned,  seized 
Munich-     The  Austrians,  under  Prince  Charles  of  Lorraine^ 
were  defeated  by  Frederick  at  Czaslau;  but  the  result  of 
this  disaster  was  that  the  Queen  was  freed  for  the  time  from 
her  most  dangerous  enemy,  for  it  induced  her  to  conclude 
peace  with  him  soon  after  the  battle.     Frederick  received 
Upper  and  the  greater  part  of  Lower  Silesia. 

7.  Successes  of  Austria.  The  Second  Silesian  War. — ^As 
Saxony  followed  the  example  of  Prussia,  the  Austrians  had 
now  only  the  French  and  Bavarians  to  contend  with.  The 
former  were  in  Prague ;  but,  when  besieged  by   Prince 


XVI.] 


YEARS  OF  PEACE, 


177 


Charles,  they  made  their  escaf)e  and  left  Bohemia  alto- 
gether. Charles  VI  I.  made  himself  master  of  Bavaria  again 
for  a  time  ;  but  early  in  1743  he  had  once  more  to  take 
refuge  in  Franlcfurt.  In  the  same  year  the  cause  of  Maria 
Theresa  was  greatly  strengthened  by  the  victory  of  Georgi 
II.  of  England  at  Dettingen  over  the  French.  Frederick 
II.  was  alarmed  by  the  successes  of  Austria,  for  he  feared 
that  Maria  Theresa  would  take  the  first  opportunity  to 
gain  back  Silesia.  In  1744,  therefore,  he  began  what  is 
called  the  Second  Silesian  H^^r— nominally  in  support  of 
Charles  VII.  The  latter  died  early  in  1745  ;  but  the  war 
continued.  The  Prussians  gained  three  great  victories  one 
after  the  other — those  of  Hohenfriedberg^  Sorr,  and  Kessels- 
dorf.  Immediately  after  the  last  of  these  battles,  peace  was 
made  at  Dresden^  Frederick  being  allowed  to  keep  his 
Silesian  conquests. 

8.  Francis  I.  War  with  France  continued.— Meanwhile, 
Maximilian  Joseph,  the  son  of  Charles  VII.,  had  received 
back  his  hereditary  territory  on  condition  of  giving  up  for 
ever  his  pretensions  to  Austria.  On  September  13,  I74S> 
Maria  Theresa's  husband,  Francis,  Grand  Duke  of  Tuscany^ 
was  elected  Emperor.  After  the  Peace  of  Dresden  he  was 
acknowledged  by  Frederick  II.  The  war  with  France  was 
continued  by  Austria,  along  with  England,  for  some  years. 
The  French,  under  Marshal  Saxe,  an  illegitimate  son  of 
Augustus  II.,  King  of  Poland,  were  led  in  the  Netherlands 
from  victory  to  victory.  In  1748  the  Peace  of  Aachen  was 
concluded.  Austria  had  to  yield  Parma  and  Piacenza; 
but  her  German  territory  remained  intact 

9.  Years  of  peace.— The  following  eight  years  were  years 
of  peace.  Both  Maria  Theresa  and  Frederick  made  good 
use  of  them  for  the  benefit  of  their  subjects.  During  the 
greater  part  of  the  year  Frederick  lived  in  the  palace  of 
Sans  Soucii  which  he  built  for  himself  at  Potsdam.     He 


178 


FREDERICK  THE  GREAT, 


[chap. 


devoted  several  hours  each  day  to  public  business  ;  but  he 
also  found  time  for  social  intercourse,  for  study,  and  for 
music,  of  which  he  was  passionately  fond.  Once  a  year  he 
made  a  tour  of  his  dominions,  in  order  to  review  his  troops, 
and  to  make  himself  acquainted  with  the  state  of  the 
kingdom.  He  made  great  efforts  to  improve  the  admini- 
stration of  justice,  simplifying  it  and  bringing  it  more  withirf 
the  reach  of  all  classes.  Various  industries  were  en- 
couraged ;  and  Berlin  was  beautified  with  new  buildings, 
and  enriched  by  works  of  art  brought  at  considerable  cost 
from  other  countries.  Frederick  generally  spoke  and  wrote 
French  ;  and  he  kept  up  a  friendly  correspondence  with  the 
leading  literary  and  scientific  men  of  France.  He  himself 
wrote  numerous  works,  both  in  prose  and  verse,  in  French. 
In  1750  he  induced  Voltaire  to  come  and  stay  at  his  court. 
The  great  writer  was  at  first  treated  with  every  mark  of 
respect  ;  but  misunderstandings  arose,  and  in  the  end  he 
was  obliged  to  quit  Prussia. 

10.  Preparations  for  war.  Alliances. — Although  Europe 
was  at  peace,  no  one  expected  that  war  could  be  very  long 
delayed.  Even  when  several  years  had  passed,  Maria 
Theresa  could  not  reconcile  herself  to  the  loss  of  Silesia, 
which,  now  that  it  had  come  into  other  hands,  seemed  to 
acquire  a  new  value.  The  fact  that  the  province  was 
flourishing  under  the  judicious  government  of  Frederick  by 
no  means  lessened  her  regret.  She  was  far  from  being 
Frederick's  only  enemy.  Most  of  the  European  Powers 
saw  with  jealousy  the  rapid  advance  of  the  new  State  under 
its  young  sovereign.  Frederick  was  aware  of  this,  and  per- 
ceived that  he  had  before  him  a  struggle  greater  than  any  in 
which  he  had  yet  been  involved — a  struggle  not  only  for  his 
new  territory,  but  probably  even  for  his  crown.  He  silently 
prepared  to  maintain  his  rights  against  all  enemies.  Dis- 
trusting France,  and  knowing  the  value  of  an  alliance  with 


XVI.] 


THE  SEVEN  YEARS'  WAR. 


179 


England,  he  sought  the  friendship  of  the  latter  countiy. 
England  had  hitherto  fought  on  the  side  of  Austria  ;  but 
Prussia  was  in  every  respect  a  more  natural  ally.  A  treaty 
was,  therefore,  concluded  between  the  two  countries  in 
January,  1756.  Austria,  which  had  so  often  stood  opposed 
to  France,  felt  that  she  had  now  a  common  cause  with  her 
ancient  enemy,  and  made  proposals  for  an  alliance.  The 
great  rivals  soon  came  to  an  understanding  ;  and  they  were 
afterwards  joined  by  Saxony  and  Russia.  The  ruin  of 
Frederick  was  the  end  which  all  these  allies  set  before 
themselves. 

1 1.  Be^nning  of  the  Seven  Years*  War. — Frederick  was 
secretly  informed  of  the  alliances  that  were  being  con- 
cluded against  him.  It  was  now  that  he  displayed  his  real 
greatness.  Far  from  being  overwhelmed  by  the  dangers 
which  beset  him,  he  was  roused  to  new  activity.  Knowing 
that  delay  might  prove  fatal,  he  resolved  to  strike  the  first 
blow,  and  to  strike  it  vigorously.  It  was  of  great  importance 
to  him  that  Saxony  should  not  be  in  the  power  of  the 
enemy.  When,  therefore,  he  found  that  he  could  not  gain 
the  friendship  of  that  countr}-^,  he  suddenly  appeared  at  its 
frontiers,  in  August,  1756,  with  an  army  of  60,000  men. 
The  Saxon  army,  which  was  1 7,000  strong,  hastily  retreated, 
and  took  up  a  strong  position  in  the  valley  of  the  Elbe,  be- 
tween Pima  and  Konigstein.  They  were  instantly  shut  in 
by  the  Prussians  ;  but  Frederick  had  soon  to  detach  a  body 
of  troops  in  order  to  meet  the  Austrians,  who  were  ad- 
vancing to  the  relief  of  the  distressed  army.  On  October  i, 
a  battle  was  fought  at  Lowositz^  in  which,  after  doing  great 
damage  to  the  Prussians,  the  Austrians  were  defeated 
Notwithstanding  this  disappointment,  the  Saxons  made  a 
brave  attempt  to  break  through  the  Prussian  lines  ;  but 
they  were  driven  back,  and  compelled  to  yield  themselves 
prisoners  of  war.    The  men  had  to  join  the  Prussian  army ; 


w 


iSo 


FREDERICK  THE  GREAT. 


[CHAP, 


but  their  hearts  were  not  in  the  service  of  Frederick,  and 
many  of  them  deserted. 

12.  Victory  of  the  Prussians  near  Prague.— Next  year  the 
prospects  of  Frederick  seemed  dark  indeed.     Sweden  had 
added  herself  to  the  list  of  his  enemies.     Of  the  Gennan 
princes  only  the  Landgrave  of  Hessen  and  the  Dukes  of 
Brunswick  and   Gotha  sided  with  him ;  the  others  had 
already  joined  Austria.     But   Frederick  did  not  despair. 
He  had  confidence  in  himself,  and  hoped  to  make  up  for 
the  smaller  number  of  his  troops  by  their  superiority  in 
discipline  and  bravery.     To  allow  his  enemies  time  to  unite 
their  forces  would  have  been  fatal  ;  he  accordingly  deter- 
mined to  attack  them  singly,  one  after  the  other.     Leaving 
a  small  force  in  Prussia  for  its  defence  against  the  Russians 
and  Swedes,  he  hastened  into  Bohemia,  and,  on  May  6, 
1757,  near  Prague,  attacked  the  Austrian  army,  which  had 
never  imagined  that  he  was  so  near.     The  Austrians  were 
commanded  by  Prince  Charles  of  Lorraine.     The  Prussians 
were  exposed  to  a  heavy  fire,  and  at  one  moment  it  seemed 
as  if  they  were  about  to  give  way.     The  aged  Field-Marshal 
Schwerin,  snatching  a  standard  from  the  hands  of  a  retreat- 
ing officer,  and  calling  on  all  who  were  not  cowards  to  follow 
him,  rushed  forwards.     He  almost  instantly  fell;   but  his 
heroism  gave  his  men  fresh  courage,  and  they  renewed  their 
attacks   with  so  much  vigour  at  various  points  that  the 
Austrians  had  to  fly.     Some  made  for  Kiittenberg^  where  an 
army  was  stationed  under  Marshal  Daiin;  but  the  greater 
number  took  refuge  in  Prague. 

13.  Misfortunes  of  Frederick. — Frederick  remained  some 
time  before  Prague;  but  on  June  18,  he  attacked  Daun 
near  Kolin.  Here  he  met  with  his  first  serious  reverse. 
At  an  unfortunate  moment  he  altered  the  original  plan  of 
battle.  The  result  was  that  what  had  promised  to  be  a 
glorious    victory  was  changed  into    a  disastrous   defeat 


% 


XVI.]  BA TTLES  OF  ROSSBACH  AND  LEUTHEN,      181 

The  Austrians,  taking  advantage  of  their  unexpected 
victory,  advanced  into  Silesia,  and  seized  greater  part  of 
the  province.  The  Russians  defeated  the  army  which  had 
been  left  in  defence  of  Prussia,  and  the  Swedes  threatened 
the  country  from  the  north.  As  if  these  misfortunes  were 
not  enough,  Frederick's  cause  was  further  injured  by  the 
base  Convention  of  Closierseven^  by  which  the  Duke  of 
Cumberland  agreed  to  disband  his  army  and  to  yield  to  the 
French  Hanover^  Hessen^  and  the  Duchy  of  Brunswick. 

14.  Battles  of  Rossbach  and  Leuthen. — A  weaker  man 
would  have  been  utterly  overwhelmed  by  such  trials  ;  but 
they  only  called  into  full  play  Frederick's  great  powers. 
The  French  had  united  with  the  Austrian  troops  ;  and  as, 
since  the  convention  of  Closterseven,  there  was  no  enemy 
to  check  their  progress,  they  were  advancing  to  take  posses- 
sion of  Saxony.  Frederick  determined,  if  possible,  to  drive 
them  back.  Marching  rapidly  towards  the  Saal^  he  came 
up  with  the  allied  armies  on  November  5,  near  the  village 
of  Rossbach.  His  troops  were  greatly  outnumbered  by 
those  of  the  enemy,  who  looked  forward  to  an  easy  victory. 
The  French  even  hoped  they  might  have  the  pleasure  of 
sending  Frederick  as  a  prisoner  to  Paris.  As  they  joyfully 
advanced,  the  Prussians,  who  occupied  a  height,  appeared 
to  pay  no  attention  to  their  movements.  The  King  himself 
quietly  sat  at  table  with  his  generals.  When,  however,  the 
French  were  near  enough,  a  terrible  fire  was  opened  by  the 
Prussians ;  and  the  cavalry,  under  the  brave  General 
Scidlitz^  swept  down  upon  the  enemy.  The  French  had 
not  looked  for  such  lapid  movement.  They  scarcely  even 
offered  battle,  but  turned  and  'fled.  This  victory  secured 
Saxony,  and  raised  the  spirits  of  the  Prussian  army  ;  but 
Frederick  did  not  feel  that  he  had  yet  done  enough  It 
was  necessary  that  Silesia  should  now  be  delivered. 
Exactly  a  month  after  the  battle  of  Rossbach,  the  battle  of 


1 83 


FREDERICK  THE  GREAT. 


[CHAP. 


Leuthen  was  fought.  The  Prussians  numbered  30,000,  the 
Austrians  80,000.  Nevertheless,  the  latter  were  utterly 
defeated,  and  driven  out  of  Silesia.  Frederick  had  thus 
in  a  short  time  swept  back  the  tide  of  invasion  which  had 
threatened  to  overwhelm  his  countiy.  Having  no  wish  to 
continue  the  war  a  day  longer  than  was  necessary,  he  made 
proposals  of  peace  to  Austria  ;  but  the  Empress  rejected 
his  offers,  and  began  to  prepare  for  a  new  campaign.  The 
supreme  command  was  taken  from  Prince  Charles  of 
Lorraine,  and  given  to  Daun,  who,  although  the  victor  of 
Kolin,  was  not  a  general  of  high  ability. 

15.  The  Battles  of  Crefeld,  Zorndorf,  and  Hochkirchen.— 
The  campaign  of  1758  was  opened  by  Ferdinand,  Duke  of 
Brunswick,  who,  with  an  army  maintained  by  England, 
attacked  the  French,  and  gradually  drove  them  out  of  the 
country  to  the  east  of  the  Rhine.  In  a  battle  fought  at 
Crefeid,  the  Duke,  with  greatly  inferior  numbers,  gained  a 
decided  victory.  Frederick  himself  attempted,  by  a  bold 
stroke,  to  seize  Olmutz  ;  but  he  was  unsuccessful.  The 
Russians  had  entered  Prussia,  and  were  treating  the  people 
very  cruelly.  Frederick,  leaving  Marshal  Kciih  to  defend 
Silesia,  came  up  with  the  Russians  near  Zorndorf  on 
August  28.  A  fearful  battle  was  fought,  in  which  neither 
side  gave  quarter.  From  morning  till  night  the  slaughter 
lasted  ;  but  in  the  end  the  Prussians  were  victorious,  and 
the  Russians  retreated  into  Poland.  The  King  hastened 
to  the  help  of  his  brother  Henry  against  the  Austrians  in 
Saxony.  Daun  took  up  a  strong  position,  whilst  Frederick 
incautiously  encamped  on  an  open  plain  near  the  village  of 
Hochkirchen,  His  generals  expostulated  with  him  ;  but  he 
would  hardly  listen  to  their  complaints.  The  Austrians 
did  not  fail  to  take  advantage  of  the  mistake.  Early  in  the 
morning  of  October  14,  whilst  it  was  still  dark,  they 
atucked  the  advanced  posts,  and,  seizing  a  battery  which 


XVI.] 


THE  BATTLE  OF  MINDEN. 


183 


commanded  the  chief  street  of  Hochkirchen,  turned  the 
cannon  against  the  Prussians.    The  latter  made  brave  efforts 
to  defend  themselves  ;  but,  knowing  nothing  of  the  position 
of  the  enemy,  they  were   tlirown  into  helpless  confusion, 
and  thousands,  with  some  of  Frederick's  best  generals, 
were  cut  down.     After  sunrise  there  was  a  dense  mist. 
When   at  length   this   cleared   away,  Frederick   saw  that 
nothing  remained  but  to  retreat.     His  army  did  so  in  such 
excellent  order  that  the  Austrians    obtained    no   further 
advantage.      Although   defeated,   Frederick  continued  his 
march  towards  Silesia,  and  his  operations  there  were  so 
successful  that  at  the  end  of  the  year  the  Austrians  had 
to  leave  the  province  in  his  hands,  and  to  take  up  their 
winter  quarters  in  Bohemia. 

16.  The  Battle  of  Minden.     The  defeat  of  Kunersdorf.— 
The   year    1759   was   an   eventful   one  for   the   Prussians. 
Frederick's  enemies  were  more  than  ever  resolved  to  crush 
him.      The  Russians   advanced  in  great   numbers,  under 
General  Soltikow,  towards  the  Oder,  whilst  the  Austrian 
army,  commanded  by  Daun  and  Loudon,  was   strongly 
reinforced.     The  French  tried   to  win  back  the  territory 
from  which  Prince  Ferdinand  had  driven  them  ;  and  for  a 
time  they  seemed  to  be  almost  certain  of  success.     The  two 
bodies  into  which  their  army  was  divided  crossed  the  Rhme 
at  different  points,  and,  uniting  near  Giessen,  seized  Cassel 
rnd  other  towns.     Ferdinand  retreated  as  far  as  Bremen, 
but  he  at  length  resolved  to  offer  battle,  and,  on  August  i, 
came  up   with   the   French   near  Minden.      The   French 
cavalry,  which  was  placed  in  the  centre,  was  attacked  by 
the    English    and   Hanoverian  infantry,  and  routed.      A 
crushing    defeat   would   have   been   the    result,   but   Lord 
George    Sackville,   whom    Prince    Ferdinand   ordered   to 
pursue    the   French,   either   from  cowardice    or   jealousy 
refused  to  obey,  and  the  enemy  thus  managed  to  reUeat 


i84 


FREDERICK  THE  GREA  T. 


[chap. 


in  good  order.  But  Ferdinand's  victory  was  complete 
enough  to  enable  him  to  regain  the  whole  of  the  ground  he 
had  lost  King  Frederick  was  by  no  means  so  successful 
This  was  for  him  the  most  unfortunate  campaign  of  the 
Seven  Years'  War.  For  some  time  his  great  object  was  to 
prevent  the  union  of  the  Russians  with  the  division  of  the 
Austrian  army  under  Loudon.  When  the  former  succeeded 
in  crossing  the  Oder,  he  sent  General  Wedel  to  oppose 
their  further  progress.  On  June  23,  Wedel  attacked  the 
enemy  at  Kay,  and  was  defeated.  As  the  Russians  and 
Austrians  now  united  their  forces,  Frederick  resolved  to 
proceed  against  them  himself,  and  to  attack  them  with  his 
whole  strength.  He  seems  to  have  regarded  this  as  a 
supreme  effort,  on  which  everything  depended  ;  for  he  made 
provision  for  the  government  of  his  kingdom  in  case  he 
should  either  be  killed  or  taken  prisoner,  and  charged  his 
brother  Henry  on  no  account  to  conclude  a  peace  disgrace- 
ful to  Prussia.  The  great  battle  was  fought  on  August  12, 
near  Kunersdorf.  After  a  long  and  fierce  contest,  the  left 
wing  of  the  Russians  was  put  to  llight.  Frederick's  troops 
were  already  worn  out  by  long  marches,  and  his  generals 
entreated  him  not  to  ask  them  to  do  more  that  day.  But  he 
hoped  to  succeed,  and  ordered  the  battle  to  go  on.  The 
Russian  right  wing  and  the  Austrians  were  still  fresh,  and 
the  Prussians  in  vain  tried  to  break  their  ranks.  The 
attempt  was  again  and  again  made,  but  always  with  the 
same  result.  At  length  the  Pnissians  themselves  gave  way. 
Their  numbers  had  been  fearfully  reduced,  and,  instead  of 
retreating  in  their  usual  good  order,  they  fled  in  wild 
confusion.  Not  fewer  than  17,000  Prussians  fell  in  this 
battle.  Frederick  appeared  almost  broken-hearted  as  he 
saw  his  brave  army  break  up  and  disperse  in  all  directions, 
pursued  by  the  Austrian  cavalry.  When  he  was  brought, 
almost  against  his  will,  to  a  place  of  safety,  he  wrote  in 


XVI.]     BATTLES  OF  LIEGNITZ  AND   TORGAU, 


lo- 


pencil  to  his  minister  Friesenstein^  "  All  is  lost :  save  the 
royal  family."     Shortly  afterwards  he  despatched  a  second 
note  :  "The  consequences  of  this  battle  will  be  worse  than 
the  battle  itself.     I  shall  not  survive  the  ruin  of  the  Father- 
land.     Adieu,  for  ever ! "      Fortunately  the   King's  fore- 
bodings were  not  realized.      Although  allies,  the  Russians 
and  Austrians  were  very  jealous  of  each  other ;   and  this 
feeling  prevented  them  from  taking  full  advantage  of  their 
victory.      The    defeat  of    Kunersdorf,  however,  was  not 
Frederick's  only  misfortune  in  this  campaign.     A  body  of 
troops  was  sent  by  him  to  defend  Dresden;    but  before 
they  arrived  Count  ScJunettau^  in  order  to  save  the  military 
chest,  had  delivered  up  the  city  to  the  Austrians.     Some- 
what later,   General    Fink    was    compelled    to  surrender 
himself  and   his   army,   consisting   of    5,000   men,   to   the 
Austrians    at    Maxeii;    whereupon    General    Daun    took 
possession  of  Dresden,  and  determined  to  winter  in  Saxony. 
Frederick  harassed  him  for  some  time  ;    but  in  January, 
1760,  the  excessive  cold  compelled  even  the  King  to  go 
into  winter  quarters. 

1 7.  The  Battles  of  Liegnitz  and  Torgau. — The  position  of 
Frederick  became  daily  more  trying.  Prussia  was  at  this 
time  a  small  kingdom,  and  its  resources  appeared  now 
almost  exhausted.  On  the  other  hand,  there  appeared 
nothing  to  prevent  his  enemies  from  continuing  the  war  for 
an  indefinite  time.  But  a  peace  concluded  after  so  many 
misfortunes  could  not  but  be  unfavourable.  Frederick 
therefore  resolved  to  go  on  with  the  war,  making  the  most 
of  the  small  means  at  his  disposal.  In  the  summer  of  1760 
he  had  to  meet  a  fresh  disaster.  The  force  of  General 
Fouqiii^  who  had  been  entrusted  with  the  defence  of  Silesia, 
was  surrounded  by  the  Austrians  at  Landshut.  The 
Prussians  never  fought  more  bravely,  but  they  could  not 
hold  out  against  greatly  superior  numbers.    General  Fou  ju^ 


i86 


FREDERICK  THE  GREAT. 


[chap. 


himself  was  taken  prisoner.     Frederick  tried  to  make  up  for 
this  defeat  by  bombarding  Dresden  ;  but,  as  Daun  came  to 
its  relief,  he  had  to  raise  the  siege.     He  hastened  to  Silesia, 
where  the  successes  of  General  Loudon  made  his  presence 
necessary.     The  Austrians  under  Daiin  and  I^sci  accom- 
panied him,  a  division  marching  on  either  side  of  his  army. 
At  Liegiiitz  these  generals  were  joined  by  Loudon,  and  they 
resolved  to   surround  and  cut  down  the  Prussian   army. 
Early  in  the  morning  of  August  15,  Loudon  marched  silently 
towards  the  heights  of  Pfaffendorf,  whence  he  expected  to 
be  able  to  attack  the  enemy  in  the  rear.     But  during  the 
night  Frederick  had  taken  possession  of  these  very  heights 
Loudon  gave  battle,  hoping  to  be  assisted  by  Daun  ;  but 
the  latter  was  ignorant  of  what  was  going  on,  so  that  the 
Prussians  were  soon  victorious.      When    Daun   advanced 
from  another  side,  he  was  attacked  by  the  Prussian  right 
wing  under  the  brave  General  Ziethen,  and  driven  back. 
Frederick's  victory  was  thus  complete.      But  he   had   no 
sooner  gained  this  advantage,  which  made  Silesia  safe,  than 
he  had  to  meet  new  difficulties.     The  Russians,  joined  by 
the  Austrians  under  Lasci,  advanced  to   Berlin,   and   on 
October  4  they  entered  it  in  triumph.     In  a  few  days  they 
retreated,   a    rumour  having    arisen   that    Frederick    was 
marching  to  the  relief  of  his  capital.     On  Nov.  3  another 
battle  was  fought  between  the  army  of  Frederick  and  that  of 
Marshal  Daun,  who  occupied  a  strong  position  near  Torgan. 
The  Prussians  attacked  the  Austrians  in  two  divisions,  the 
one  led  by  Frederick  himself,  the  other  by  Ziethen.    Fre- 
derick's division  suffered  fearfully ;  and  he  was  under  the  im- 
pression at  night  that  the  battle  would  have  to  be  renewed 
in  the  mornir.  g.     But  in  the  morning  it  was  found  that  the 
Austrians  had  silently  retreated.  Daun  marched  to  Dresden ; 
but  the  greater  part  of  Saxony  now  fell  anew  into  Frederick's 
hands,  and  he  took  up  his  winter  quarters  at  Leipzig. 


XVI.] 


FREDERICK  AND  THE  RUSSIANS. 


187 


18.  Movements  of  Prince  Henry  and  Frederick  in  1761.— 
During  the  summer  of  1761  Prince  Henry,  whom  PYederick 
afterwards  declared  to  have  been   the  only  general   who 
made  no  mistakes  during  this  war,  succeeded  in  thwarting 
all   the  plans  of  Marshal  Daun  for   the   recovery   of  the 
pait  of  Saxony  which  the  Prussians  had  conquered.     Much 
of  the  year  was  spent  by  Frederick  himself  in  preventing 
the  Russians  under   Butterlin^   and  the  Austrians  under 
Loudoiiyixom  joining  their  forces.      On  August  12  the  two 
armies  succeeded  in  uniting,  and  Frederick  was  for  some 
time  shut  up  in  his  quarters  near  Btmzelwitz.     But  the 
allies  did  nothing.     They  were  still  jealous  of  each  other, 
and  soon  separated.      They   did  far  more  damage  when 
acting  apart  than  when  together.      Loudon,  by  an  unex- 
pected  movement,    hastened    to    Schiveidnitz,  which,   on 
October  i,  fell  into  his  hands.     By  the  possession  of  this 
town  he  commanded  a  large  part  of  Silesia.     On  the  other 
hand,  the  Russians  wintered  in  Pomerania.     The  important 
town  of  Colberg  resisted  them  for  four  months  ;  but,  on 
December  i,  it  had  to  surrender. 

19.  Alliance  of  Frederick  with  the  Russians.— The  year 
1762  brought  with  it  new  hope  for  Frederick.  On  January 
5,  the  Empress  Elizabeth  of  Russia  died.  Her  successor, 
Peter  IIL,  not  only  made  peace,  but  entered  into  an 
alliance  with  Frederick.  As  Sweden  also  signed  a  treaty  of 
peace  with  Prussia,  Frederick  could  now  devote  himself 
wholly  to  the  task  of  overcoming  the  Austrians.  When 
joined  by  his  Russian  allies,  he  advanced  to  attack  Daun  at 
Buckersdorf.  During  the  march  the  unwelcome  news 
came  that  Peter  HI.  had  been  murdered  ;  and  CzernitscheJ, 
the  Russian  commander,  received  orders  from  the  Empress 
Catherine  II.  to  return  with  his  army  at  once  to  Poland. 
Frederick  persuaded  Czernitschef  to  conceal  his  instmctions 
for  three  days.     Before  that  dme  had  passed  the  Austrians 


iS8 


FREDERICK  THE  GREAT. 


[chap. 


XVI.] 


FIRST  PARTITION  OF  POLAND. 


189 


were  attacked  and  defeated.  The  Russians  then  withdrew ; 
and  Frederick  besieged  Schweidnitz.  It  held  out  for  nine 
weeks  ;  but  on  October  9,  its  provisions  being  exhausted,  it 
surrendered.  The  position  of  Prussia  was  still  further 
improved  by  a  victory  gained  by  Prince  Henry  over  the 
Austrians  at  Freiberg  on  October  29,  and  by  the  continued 
successes  of  Prince  Ferdinand  in  his  opposition  to  the 
French,  who  had  made  great  but  vain  efforts  to  subdue 
him.  Whilst  Frederick  went  into  winter  quarters,  having 
previously  agreed  to  an  armistice  with  Austria,  General 
Kleist,  with  an  army  of  lopoo  men,  carried  the  war  into 
Franconia,  and  compelled  the  hostile  German  princes  ir 
conclude  peace. 

20.  The  Peace  of  Hubertusburg. — The  Empress  Maria 
Theresa,  notwithstanding  all  that  had  passed,  would  gladly 
have  continued  the  war ;  but  she  knew  she  soon  would 
have  to  do  so  alone.  The  Empress  Catherine  had  con- 
firmed the  peace  concluded  with  Frederick  by  her  husband  ; 
and  France,  exhausted  by  its  struggle  with  England,  was 
about  to  give  up  the  contest.  Negotiations  between  Austria 
and  Saxony  on  the  one  hand,  and  Prussia  on  the  other, 
were  therefore  entered  into,  and,  on  February  15,  1763,  a 
few  days  after  the  conclusion  of  the  Peace  of  Paris ^  the 
Treaty  of  Hubertitsburg  was  signed.  The  chief  article  ol 
this  treaty  was  the  confirmation  of  Frederick  in  his  posses- 
sion of  Silesia.  One  of  the  most  destructive  wars  in  history 
thus  left  the  two  chief  combatants  in  apparently  the  same 
position  as  that  in  which  it  had  found  them.  But  it  was  not 
really  so.  For  seven  years  Prussia,  trusting  mainly  to  her 
own  resources,  had  maintained  her  independence  against 
the  combined  forces  of  several  of  the  leading  European 
Powers.  A  stniggle  so  bravely  carried  on  could  not,  when 
triumphantly  closed,  leave  things  exactly  as  they  had  been. 
As  the  result  of  the  Seven  Years'  War,  Prussia  rose  from  the 


i- 


position  of  a  petty  kingdom,  which  no  one  much  respected 
or  feared,  to  that  of  a  Great  Power.  She  also  learned 
her  own  strength,  and  prepared  the  way  for  those  great 
achievements  by  which  she  has  since  made  her  name 
famous.  From  this  time  Prussia  became  the  rival  of 
Austria  in  Germany  ;  and  the  minor  States  grouped  them- 
selves around  these  two  Powers  according  to  their  tastes 
and  sympathies.  The  question  which  of  the  two  Powers 
was  in  the  end  to  be  supreme  gradually  became  the  leading 
question  in  German  poUtics.  It  did  not  receive  a  final 
answer  till  our  own  day. 

21.   Joseph  II.       Home    government  of  Frederick  the 
Great.— Francis  I.  died  in  1765.     He  was  succeeded  in  the 
same   year  by   his   son,   Joseph   IL     Maria  Theresa  had 
associated  the  latter  with  her  in  the  government  of  the 
hereditary  Austrian  lands  ;  but  during  her  lifetime  he  had 
very  little  authority.     Under  the  vigorous  government  of 
Frederick  II.,  Prussia  gradually  recovered  from  the  effects 
of  the  Seven  Year's  War.     Order  was  everywhere  esta- 
blished, and  those  who  had  been  ruined  were  helped  by 
gifts  of  money  and  corn.     The  King's  measures  were  by  no 
means  always  popular.  A  Government  monopoly  of  tobacco 
and  coffee  was  especially  disliked.     On  the  whole,  how- 
ever, hi»  rule  was  wise  and  disinterested,  and  encouraged 
the  energies  of  the  people  to  flow  in  a  variety  of  new 
directions.     To  Silesia,  which  had  cost  him  so  many  sacri- 
fices, Frederick  always  devoted  special  attention  ;  and  he 
was  rewarded  by  seeing  the  population  steadily  increase  in 
numbers  and  wealth. 

22.  First  partition  of  Poland.— During  the  interval  of 
peace  that  followed  the  Treaty  of  Hubertusburg,  Austria  and 
Prussia  joined  Russia  in  doing  a  great  public  wrong.  With- 
out the  smallest  provocation,  these  Powers  seized,  in  1772, 
a  large  part  of  Poland,  and   divided  it  between    tliera 


I90 


FREDERICK  THE  GREAT, 


[chap. 


Poland  was  very  badly  governed  ;  but  that  was  no  reason 
why  it  should  be  robbed  of  a  third  of  its  territory  by 
neighbouring  nations.  By  this  first  partition  Austria  re- 
ceived East  Galicia  and  Lodomiria;  Frederick,  what  was 
called  West  Prussia^  but  without  the  important  towns  of 
Danzig  and  Thorn. 

23.  The  **  Potato  War." — A  few  years  after^vards  the 
peace  of  Germany  was  for  a  short  time  broken.  On  the 
death  of  Maximilian  Joseph^  Elector  of  Bavaria,  in  1777, 
the  Emperor  Joseph  asserted  a  claim  to  Lower  Bavaria, 
and,  marching  into  the  country',  took  possession  of  it.  The 
true  heir,  Charles  Theodore^  the  Elector  Palatine,  was  taken 
by  surprise,  and  gave  up  to  Austria  two  thirds  of  his  inheri- 
tance on  condition  that  he  should  retain  the  remaining 
third.  The  Elector  Palatine's  heir,  the  Duke  of  Zwei- 
briicken,  protested  against  this  arrangement,  and  appealed 
to  Frederick  II.  for  help.  Frederick,  who  was  unwilling 
that  Austria  should  become  too  powerful,  sided  against  the 
Emperor,  and  once  more  marched  into  Bohemia.  But  no 
battle  was  fought.  On  receiving  the  Circle  of  BurgaUy 
Austria  consented  to  yield  the  rest  of  Bavaria.  Peace 
was  therefore,  at  Teschen^  concluded  on  May  13,  1779. 
The  war  thus  ended  was  nicknamed  "the  potato  war," 
because  the  soldiers  were  said  to  have  nothing  to  do  except 
to  cook  their  potatoes. 

24.  Death  of  Maria  Theresa.  Attempted  reforms  of 
Joseph  II. — Joseph's  mother,  Maria  Theresa,  died  on 
November  29,  1780.  He  then  became  sole  nilcr  of  the 
Austrian  dominions.  He  was  full  of  good  wishes  for  his 
subjects,  and  had  long  meditated  daring  schemes  of  reform. 
He  instantly  began  to  put  his  ideas  into  practice.  No 
fewer  than  624  monasteries  were  closed,  and  an  edict  of 
toleration  was  proclaimed,  by  which  freedom  of  worship 
was  granted  to  aU  Christain  sects.     The  Emperor's  attack* 


XVI.] 


JOSEPH  IL 


191 


on  the  supposed  rights  of  the  Church  excited  such  violent 
opposition  that   Pope    Pius    VI.  himself   visited  Vienna 
He  was  received  with  enthusiasm  by  the  people  ;  but  the 
Emperor  treated  him  with  marked  coldness,  and  concedea 
nothing.     It  was  not  only  the  Church  that  Joseph  tried  to 
/     reform.     He  attempted  to  simplify  the  administration  of 
justice,  to  do  away  with  the  privileges  of  the  nobility,  and  to 
introduce  a  uniform  system  of  government  throughout  his 
hereditary  states.     In  all  this  he  was  too  rash.     He  forgot 
that  great  reforms  cannot  be  effected  all  at  once,  and  that 
it  is  impossible,  even  if  it  were  desirable,  to  force  nation- 
alities, whose  circumstances  are  widely  different,  into  one 
mould.       In    1785   he    made   another    attempt   to   obtain 
possession  of  Bavaria  ;  but  his  plans  were  again  thwarted 
by  Frederick,  who  formed  a  League  for  the  preservation  of 
the  Imperial  constitution.     This  League  was  joined  by  the 
majority  of  the  temporal  princes  and  by  the   Elector  of 
Mainz,  and  may  be  regarded  as  the  first  attempt  of  Prussia 
seriously  to  contest  with  Austria  the  leading  place  in  Ger- 
many.     It  came  to  an  end  immediately  after  the  death  of 

Frederick- 

25.  Death  of  Frederick  the  Great      Frederick  William 

II, Frederick  was  now  an  old  man,  and  had  survived 

most  of  those  who   had  shared  his  former  triumphs  and 

defeats.     Years  had  not  softened  his  character.     His  mind, 

(however,  remained  active  to  the  last,  and  he  never  lost  his 

jinterest  in  affairs  of  state.      He  died  on  August   17,  1786, 

/and  was  succeeded  by  his  nephew  Frederick  William  II. 

The  latter  proved  a  weak  King,  under  the  dominion  of  un- 

vvorthy  favourites. 

26.  Failure  of  Joseph  II.'s  schemes.      His  death.— The 
Emperor  Joseph  soon,  found  himself  in  circumstances  of 

•  extreme  difficulty.     In   1788  he  engaged  in  an  unwise  war 
with  the  Turks.      He  himself  accompanied  the  Austrian 


192 


FREDERICK  THE  GREAT. 


[CH.  XVI.] 


troops  ;  but  nothing  creditable  either  to  him  or  his  army 
was  done.  Meanwhile,  discontent  had  been  rapidlv 
growing  up,  especially  in  Hungary  and  the  Austrian 
Netherlands.  The  people  of  the  latter  country— with  the 
exception  of  Ltixemburg — at  length  rebelled,  and,  on 
October  22,  1789,  formed  an  independent  Government  at 
Breda.  The  Hungarian  nobles,  indignant  at  the  attack  of 
the  Emperor  on  their  privileges,  roused  the  peasantry  to 
revolt ;  and  they  so  far  succeeded  that  Joseph  had  to  undo 
in  Hungary  all  the  reforms  he  had  tried  with  so  much 
zeal  to  carry  out.  His  health  had  been  seriously  injured 
during  the  campaign  against  the  Turks.  The  anxiety 
caused  by  the  opposition  of  his  subjects  to  his  well-meant 
schemes  on  their  behalf  greatly  increased  his  weakness, 
and  he  died,  almost  broken-hearted,  on  Februr\ry  20,  179a 

27.  Leopold  W.— Peter  Leopold,  Grand  Duke  of  Tuscany, 
Joseph  II.'s  brother,  succeeded  to  the  Austrian  inheritance. 
He  was  more  cautious  than  Joseph,  and,  by  returning  to 
the  principles  which  had  always  hitherto  regulated  Austrian 
policy,  he  soon  restored  his  States  to  peace.  On  September 
20,  1790  he  was  elected  Emperor. 


i 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

THE  FALL  OF  THE  EMPIRE  AND  OF  THE  KINGDOM  OF 

GERMANY. 

The  French  Revolution;  how  regarded  in  Germany ;  resolution  of 
Leopold  II.  and  Frederick   William  II  to  support  the  French 
King;  death  of  Leopold  II.  {i)—%uar  declared  by  France  against 
Austria;  Prussia  joifts  Austria;  successes  of  the  allies;  their 
reverses;  Mainz  taken  by  the  French  {2)— the  campaigns  of  jygj 
and  17^4  (Z) — Second  Partition  of  Poland ;  Austria  is  Jealous 
of  Prussia,  and  intrigues  with  Russia  against  her;  coldness  of 
Frederick   William  II.    in  prosecuting  the  war;   secret  treaty 
between  Austria  and  Russia  ;    Peace  of  Basel ;  gains  of  Prussia 
and  Austria  by  the  Third  Partition  of  Poland  {/s;)— campaigns 
of  ijg6  and  jfgj  in  Italy  and  Germany ;   preliminaries  of 
peace  signed  at  Leoben  ;  Treaty  of  Campo  Formio ;   Congress  of 
Rastatt  (5) — Austria  joins  England  and  Russia  against  France; 
successes  of  the  allies  in  1799;  Russia  wit  Jidraws  from  the  war; 
battles  of  Marengo  and  Hohenlinden  ;  Peace  of  Luniville  (6) — 
alliance  against  France  in  j8os ;  surrender  of  General  Mack ; 
battle  ofAustcrlitz  ;  Peace  of  Pressburg  {:])—the  Confederation 
of  the  Rhine  {%)— Francis  II.  resigns  the  Imperial  Crown;  end 
of  the  Roman  Empire  and  tlie  Kingdom  of  Germany  (9). 


/      I 


The  French  Revolution.     Death  of  Leopold  II.— The 

/  French  Revolution  caused  great  excitement  in  Germany. 

\  Many  thought  it  the  beginning  of  better  times  for  the  whole 

of  Europe  ;  but  the  princes  naturally  looked  on  it  with  fear 

and  hatred.    The  French  refugees,  of  whom  there  were  a 

N 


194 


FALL  OF  THE  EMPIRE, 


[chap. 


great  number,  tried  to  strengthen  the  latter  feelings,  and 
urged  the  princes  to  make  war  on  France.  Some  time 
passed  before  the  great  German  Powers,  who  were  very 
jealous  of  one  another,  would  consent  to  act  together.  At 
last  the  Emperor  Leopold  and  Frederick  William  II.  of 
Prussia  met  at  Pillnitz^  near  Dresden,  and  resolved  to 
support  the  French  King.  Before  anything  was  done,  how- 
ever, Leopold  died,  early  in  1792. 

2.  War  with  France. — Leopold  was  succeeded  by  his  son" 
Francis  II.  The  French,  irritated  by  foreign  inteiference 
in  their  affairs,  had  already  declared  war  against  Austria, 
in  April,  1792.  Austria  was  joined  by  Prussia  ;  and  a 
Prussian  army,  under  Ferdinand,  Duke  of  Bntnswick,  and 
accompanied  by  Frederick  William  IL  himself,  soon 
marched  into  France.  The  Pmssians  were  aided  by  many 
French  refugees  and  6,000  Hessians.  The  war,  which  was 
to  grow  into  a  contest  unparalleled  for  the  greatness  of  its 
operations  and  of  the  issues  depending  on  it,  was  at  first 
favourable  to  the  German  Powers.  Valenciennes^  Long^cy^ 
and  Verdun  all  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Prussian  general  ; 
and  a  rapid  advance  might  easily  have  been  made  dn  Paris. 
But  fortune  soon  changed.  The  Duke  of  Brunswick  issued  a 
proclamation  calling  upon  the  French  people  to  submit  to 
their  lawful  King,  and  threatening  Paris  with  the  fate  of 
ancient  Jerusalem  if  the  slightest  affront  were  offered  to  the 
royal  family.  This  manifesto  roused  deep  indignation 
throughout  France,  and  thousands  flocked  from  all  parts  of 
the  country  to  drive  back  the  invader.  A  slight  action  took 
place  at  Vabny,  after  which  the  Duke  of  Brunswick,  the 
Prussians  having  been  much  weakened  by  disease,  gave 
oiders  for  a  retreat.  The  dispirited  troops  hastened  towards 
the  Rhine,  which  they  crossed  at  Coblcutz.  The  Austrians 
were  even  less  fortunate  than  their  allies.  They  were  over- 
taken by  the  French  at  Jemmappes^  where,  on  November  5, 


WII.] 


WAR  WITH  FRANCE. 


I9S 


1792,  a  battle  was  fought  After  an  obstinate  fight  the 
Austrians  had  to  fly  ;  and  in  a  few  days  the  French  entered 
Brussels.  Since  the  time  of  Joseph  IL  the  Netherlands 
had  never  been  really  loyal  to  Austria,  so  that  they  gladly 
threw  off  the  yoke  of  that  country,  and  proclaimed  a 
Republic.  In  the  meantime,  Mainz  had  fallen  into  the 
hands  of  the  French,  who  were  warmly  welcomed  by  a  con- 
siderable number  of  the  people. 

3.  Progress  of  the  War. — Almost  immediately  after  the 
execution  of  Lewis  XVI. ^  France  made  war  on  Great 
Britain,  Holland,  and  Spain.  After  much  discussion  the 
States  of  the  Empire  declared  war  against  France,  but  they 
had  little  real  share  in  the  struggle  that  followed.  The 
Austrian  amiy  in  the  Netherlands  was  commanded  by  the 
Duke  of  Coburg.  On  March  18,  1793,  it  defeated  the 
French  at  Neerwimien.  A  second  victory  was  gained  by 
the  Austrians,  aided  by  a  British  division,  at  Famarsj  and 
the  towns  of  Cond^  and  Valenciennes  were  taken  by  the 
allies.  These  advantages  were  not  followed  up  with  much 
energy,  so  that  the  French  soon  won  back  lost  ground. 
After  being  defeated  at  IVattignies,  on  October  16,  the 
Austrians  retreated.  The  Austrian  army  on  the  Middle 
Rhine,  commanded  by  IVnrmser,  was  routed  on  the  26th 
December  by  Hoc/ie,  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Lauter. 
The  Prussians  had,  after  a  long  siege,  recovered  Mainz,  and 
"•ained  a  victory  at  Kaisers lautern;  but,  after  the  defeat 
of  Wurmser,  they  had  to  fall  back,  and  were  able  to  hold 
only  a  small  district  round  Mainz.  In  1794  the  Emperor 
Francis  joined  the  Austrian  troops  in  the  Netherlands  ; 
and,  together  with  the  allies,  they  gained  several  advantages. 
The  town  of  Landrecies  fell  into  their  hands.  But  fortune 
again  turned  in  favour  of  the  French.  On  May  22  Pichegru 
defeated  the  allies  at  Tonrnay ;  and  on  June  26  a  still 
greatei  victory  was  gained  by  Joiirdan  at  Fleurus.     Whilst 


196 


FALL  OF  THE  EMPIRE, 


[chap. 


the  former  general  prepared  to  invade  Holland,  the  latter 
forced  the  Austrians  back  upon  the  Rhine,  and  compelled 
them  to  cross  it  on  October  5.  The  left  bank  of  the  Middle 
Rhine  had  already  been  given  up  to  the  French  by  the 
Austrians  and  Prussians,  who,  after  having  been  victorious 
at  Kaiserslautern  on  May  22,  had  been  defeated  at  the  same 
pla(  e  on  July  1 5. 

4.  The  Second  and  Third  Partitions  of  Poland.  Prussia 
makes  peace  with  France. — Whilst  the  war  with  France 
was  going  on,  the  attention  of  the  German  Powers  was 
much  occupied  by  the  affairs  of  Poland.  In  1793  Prussia 
joined  Russia  in  effecting  the  Second  Partition  of  that 
kingdom,  receiving  the  larger  part  of  Great  Poland,  with 
the  cities  of  Thorn  and  Danzig.  Austria  was  filled  with 
jealousy  at  the  increased  power  of  her  ally,  and  Thugut, 
the  minister  who  directed  the  Austrian  policy,  intrigued  so 
much  with  Russia  against  Prussia  that  King  Frederick 
William  II.  began  to  prosecute  the  war  with  France  coldly, 
and  to  think  of  withdrawing  altogether  from  the  struggle. 
In  1794  a  great  revolt,  headed  by  Kosciuszkoy  took  place  in 
Poland.  Prussia  tried  to  put  it  down ;  but  it  was  finally 
quelled  by  Russian  troops.  Early  in  1795  Russia  and 
Austria  concluded  a  secret  treaty,  dividing  Poland  for  the 
third  and  last  time.  The  Prussian  King,  suspicious  of  the 
policy  of  the  courts  of  Vienna  and  St  Petersburg,  resolved 
to  make  peace  with  France;  and  on  April  5,  1795,  the 
Treaty  of  Basel  was  signed.  Prussia  ceded  to  France  all 
her  possessions  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Rhine.  A  little 
later  Hanover  and  Hessen-Cassel  al«o  made  peace  with 
France.  The  secret  understanding  of  Austria  and  Russia 
with  respect  to  the  Third  Partition  of  Poland  was  made 
known  to  Prussia  on  August  8,  1795.  By  this  arrangement 
New  East  Prussia y  with  Warsaw ^  was  added  to  the 
Prussian  monarchy  ;  and  Austria  received  West  Galicuu 


■ 

I 


( 


A 


THE  PEACE  OP  CAMPO  FORMIO. 


197 


5.  The  Peace  of  Campo  Formic— During  the  summer  of 
1795    there   was   a  lull  in  the  war  between   Austria  and 
France  ;  but  in  September  the  Austrians  were  driven  across 
the  Main.     They  soon  rallied,  and  by  a  victory  at  Hochst, 
near    Frankfurt,   compelled  the    French  to  retire  to   the 
opposite  side  of  the  Rhine.      In  the  campaign  of  1796 
Austria  had  to  put  forth  her  whole  strength-      Her  army 
in  Italy  was  commanded  by  General  Beaidieu.      Opposed 
to  him  was  Napoleon  Buonaparte,  a  young  general  who 
soon  became  the  foremost  man  in  Europe.     Having  forced 
Sardinia  to  accept  peace,  Buonaparte  advanced  against  the 
Austrians,  and,  after  a  fearful  struggle,  defeated  them  at  the 
bridge  of  Lodi.     Marshal  Wunnser  was  sent  with  a  con- 
siderable army  to  their  relief;    but  he  was  several  times 
defeated,  and  on  September  9  was  obliged  to  take  refuge 
in  Mantua.      Meanwhile   important  operations   had  been 
going  on  in  Germany.      Two    French   armies,  under  the 
command  of  Moreau  and  Jourdan,  had  gone  far  into  the 
country;     but  on    August  22  Jourdan    was   defeated    at 
Neufnark  by  the  Archduke  Charles.     Two  days  afterwards 
a  second  victory  was  gained  by  the  Archduke  over  the 
same  general.      Moreau,  being  thus  left  alone,  retreated 
towards  the  Rhine.     In  Italy  the  Austrian  arms  continued 
unsuccessful.     An  army,  which  was  placed  under  Marshal 
Alvinzi,  gained  some  advantages;    but  on  November  17 
it  was  driven  with  great  loss  from  Ascole.     When  fighting 
was  begun  again  in  January,  1797,  Alvinzi  was  once  more 
defeated  at  Rivoli;  and  on  Februaiy  2  Mantua  capitulated. 
Buonaparte  now  conceived  the  bold  project  of  carrying  the 
war  into  the  hereditary  territories  of  Austria.     In  this  he 
succeeded.    Crossing  the  Alps  between  Italy  and  Carinthia, 
he  entered  the  latter  country,  and  took  up  his  head  quarters 
at  Leobefi.     As  he  was  thus  cut  off  from  all  help,  a  vigorous 
effort  on  the  part  of  Austria  might  perhaps  have  freed  hei 


^ 


198 


FALL  OF  THE  EMPIRE. 


[chap. 


XVII.] 


PEACE  OF  LUNEVILLE. 


199 


from  her  great  enemy ;  but  she  had  been  thoroughly 
humbled,  and  the  Government  now  trembled  for  Vienna 
itself.  Negotiations  were  therefore  entered  upon  ;  and  the 
preliminaries  of  peace  were  signed  at  Leoben  on  April  1 8, 
Various  difficulties  afterwards  arose  ;  but  on  October  17, 
1797,  the  Treaty  of  Campo  Formio  was  agreed  upon.  The 
Austrian  Netherlands  were  ceded  to  France.  In  return 
for  her  Italian  possessions,  which  were  formed  into  the 
Cisalpine  Republic^  Austria  received  Venice^  Friuli^  Istria 
Dalmatia^  and  the  islands  off  the  Dalmatian  coast.  By 
a  secret  article  the  Emperor  consented  to  cede  the  left 
bank  of  the  Rhine  to  France,  and  to  settle  compensations 
for  the  deprived  princes.  Immediately  after  the  conclusion 
of  this  treaty,  a  Congress  was  opened  by  Buonaparte  at 
Rastatt^  for  the  purpose  of  settling  the  terms  of  peace 
between  France  and  the  Empire.  At  this  Congress  the 
German  princes  were  treated  with  much  insolence  by  the 
French  envoys,  and  had  to  yield  every  demand  of  the 
conqueror,  however  unreasonable.  The  conditions  of  peace, 
however,  were  still  under  consideration,  when  a  change  in 
the  aspect  of  affairs  suddenly  brought  the  proceedings  of 
the  Congress  to  a  close. 

6.  Austria  joins  England  and  Russia  against  France. 
Peace  of  Luncville. — After  the  conclusion  of  the  Peace  of 
Campo  Formio,  Austria  watched  with  great  jealousy  the 
violent  doings  of  France  in  Italy  and  Switzerland.  She 
therefore  willingly  formed  an  alliance  with  Russia  and 
England  against  the  common  enemy ;  and  war  broke  out 
again  in  1799.  It  began  brilliantly  for  the  allies.  The 
Archduke  Charles  delivered  Germany  from  the  French  by 
a  great  victory  gained  over  General  Jourdan  at  Stockach 
on  March  25  ;  and  soon  afterwards  the  army  of  Massina 
was  driven  out  of  the  western  part  of  Switzerland.  In 
Italy  Marshal  Kray  was  victorious  over  the  French,  undei 


I 


Scherer,   at    Verona    and    Mag7iano.      When    the    great 
Russian  commander.  Marshal   Suwaroff,  had  jomed  the 
Austrians,  the  allies  defeated  the  French  in  battle  after 
battle,  and  freed  almost  all  Italy  from  their  yoke.     Next 
year  these  advantages  were  quickly  lost.      The  Russian 
Emperor,  whose  forces  were  not  so  successful  m  Switzerland, 
withdrew  from  the  war  ;  and  Buonaparte,  whose  very  name 
now    struck    fear    into    the    hearts   of   his    enemies,  had 
returned  from  Egypt  to  take  the  command  of  the  French. 
On  June  2,  1800,  Genoa  opened  its  gates  to  the  Austrians  ; 
but  on  that  very  day,  after  his  daring  march  across  the  Alps, 
Buonaparte  entered  Milan  in  triumph.      On  June  14  the 
^reat  battle  of  Marengo  was  fought.      The  defeat  of  the 
Austrians  was   so   complete  that  by  this  one  battle  the 
French  regained  almost  all  they  had  lost  in   Italy.     At 
the  same  time  General  Morcau  was  advancing  victoriously 
throu-h    Germany.       On    December    3    he    gained    the 
splendid  victory  of  HohenlindeiU     The  Austrian  Govern- 
ment no  longer  felt  itself  able  to  continue  the  war  and  on 
February  9,  1801,  the  Peace  of  LunivilU  was  signed.     This 
peace  confirmed  that  of  Campo  Formio.      The  Emperor 
Lain  yielded  the  Austrian   Netherlands.      He  also  con- 
sented to  recognise  the  Batavian,  Helvetic,  Cisalpine,  and 
/  icrurian  Republics ;  and  gave  the  Margraviate  of  Breisgau 
to 'the  Duke  oi  Modena,  and  the  archbishoprick  oi  Salzburg 
as  a  secular  principality,  together  with  the  title  of  Elector, 
to  the  Grand  Duke  of  Tuscany.     Besides  these  concessions 
Austria  consented  to  the  German  lands  on  the  left  bank  of 
the  Rhine  being  yielded  to  France.      They  were  formally 
given   up  by  the   States   of  the   Empire,   whose  plenipo- 
tentiaries began  their  inglorious  labours  at  Regensburg  on 
August  24,  1802.     France  thus  gained  for  a  time  the  long- 
coveted  Rhine  boundary.     The  princes  who  lost  territor7 
by  the  arrangement  received  gifts  of  secularised  ChurcU 


200 


FALL  OF  THE  EMPIRE, 


[chap. 


/ 


property  and  mediatised  free  cities  on  the  right  bank. 
The  Landgrave  oi  Hessen-Cassel,  the  Duke  of  Wiirtemberg^ 
and  the  Margrave  of  Baden,  were  made  Electors.  Of  the 
spiritual  Electors,  only  the  Archbishop  of  Mainz  kept  his 
offices ;  and  his  See  was  transferred  to  Regensburg.  Liibeck, 
Hamburg,  Bremen,  Frankfurt,  Augsburg,  and  Niirnberg, 
were  the  only  cities  allowed  to  remain  free.  The  freedom 
of  not  less  than  48  had  been  suppressed. 

7.  New  Alliance  against  France.  Battle  of  Austerlitz. 
Peace  of  Pressburg.  —  Germany  had  never  been  so 
thoroughly  humbled  as  now.  Her  territory  was  divided, 
and  the  people  handed  from  one  ruler  to  another  at  the 
bidding  of  a  foreign  conqueror.  The  disunion  of  the 
various  members  of  the  Empire  had  thus  at  last  borne 
bitter  fruit.  Little  more  was  needed  to  put  an  end  to  the 
Empire  altogether ;  and  the  unavoidable  change  soon 
came.  Buonaparte,  while  ruling  France  with  -wisdom  and 
energy,  showed  more  and  more  contempt  for  the  rights 
of  all  other  nations.  In  1803  he  seized  Hanover^  as  if  it 
had  been  a  part  of  Great  Britain.  Prussia  protested  against 
this  outrage,  but  in  general  held  seltishly  aloof,  hoping  to 
gain  through  the  losses  of  her  neighbours.  The  territory  of 
the  Empire  was  violated  in  1804  by  the  seizure  of  the  Duke 
of  Enghiefty  but  the  Diet  adjourned  to  avoid  interference  in 
the  matter.  Austria,  however,  was  preparing  for  war.  In 
J  805  she  once  more  formed  an  alliance  with  England  and 
Russia;  and  the  three  Powers,  which  were  joined  by 
Sweden,  resolved  to  make  a  grand  effort  that  should  utterly 
crush  their  opponent.  But,  by  his  rapid  movements  and 
well-arranged  plans,  Buonaparte  got  the  better  of  the  allies^ 
He  hastened  towards  the  Rhine,  and  at  once  crossed  into 
German  territory.  Fidelity  to  the  Empire  was  so  entirely  a 
thing  of  the  past  on  the  part  of  many  of  the  princes,  that  he 
tad  no  difficulty  in  bringing  Bavaria,    Wiirtetnbergy  and 


XVII.] 


THE  PEACE  OF  PRESSBURG. 


2Qk 


Baden  over  to  the  side  of  France.     General  Mack  com- 
manded an  Austrian  army  near  Ulm.     He  allowed  himself 
to  be  cut  off  from  all  communication  with  Vienna,  after 
which  he  was  several  times  defeated.     Taking  refuge  in 
Ulm,  he  was  compelled,  on  October  17,  to  capitulate  with 
his  whole  army,  which  was  then  made  up  of  30,000  men. 
On  November  13  Buonaparte  was  in  the  palace  of  Schon- 
bninn  in  Vienna  ;  and  a  few  days  afterwards  he  had  crossed 
the  Danube  in  order  to  attack  the  Austrians  and  Prussians, 
who  had  united  their  forces  in  Moravia.    The  battle  of 
Atpsterlitz  was  fought  on   December  2.     The  allies  out- 
numbered the  French,  but  mere  numbers  were  not  a  match 
for  skilful  generalship  and  the  trust  of  French  soldiers  in 
their  leader ;  and  the  battle  ended  in  a  great  victory  for 
Buonaparte.     The  war,  however,  need  not  have  ended,  if 
the  Emperor   Francis   had  been    courageous    enough    to 
persevere.      The  Russians  were  willing  to  go  on  fighting  ; 
the  Archduke  Ferdinand  was  at  the  head  of  an  army  of 
20,oco    men,    with    which    he    completely    overcame    the 
Bavarians ;  and  a  short  time  before  the  French  navy  had 
been  made  powerless  by  the  great  victory  of  the  English  at 
Trafalgar.     Besides,  it  seemed  not  improbable  that  Prussia 
might  at  last  be  aroused  to  a  sense  of  her  duty  to  the  Em- 
pire and  10  Europe.     But  the  Emperor  wished  for  peace, 
and,  in  a  personal  interview  with  Buonaparte,  arranged  pre- 
liminaries.    A  treaty  was  signed  at  Pressburg  on  December 
25. '  Austria  had  never  before  accepted  terms  so^humiliating. 
Besides    ceding    Venice    to    Italy,    she    gave    up    Tyrol, 
Vorarlberg,  and  other  lands  to  Bavaria,  and  her  territory  in 
Swabia  to  Wurtemberg  and  Baden.     In  return  for  these 
sacrifices  she  received  Salzburg,  the  Elector  of  Salzburg 
being  transferred  to  Wiirzburg,  which  was  given  up  to  him 
by  Bavaria.     Not  content  with  these  changes,  Buonaparte 
raised  the  Electors  of  Bavaria  and  Wurtemberg  to  the  rank 


202 


FALL  OF  THE  EMPIRE. 


[CHAP. 


j  of  Kings.  The  Emperor  had  to  recognize  them  and  the 
Elector  of  Baden  as  sovereigns  wholly  independent  withm 
\  their  territories.  In  return  for  Hanover,  Prussia  yielded 
Ansbach  to  Bavaria,  Cleve  and  Neiifchatd  to  France. 
\  Soon  after^vards  Buonaparte  gave  Cleve  and  Z>Vr-— received 
from  Bavaria  in  return  for  Ansbach-to  his  brother-m-law, 
Joachim  MuraU  and  Neufchatel  to  his  friend  and  councillor, 
V    Alexander  Berthier. 

"~^.  The  Confederation  of  the  Rhine.— The  Holy  Roman 
Empire  still  existed  in  name  ;  but  a  step  was  now  taken 
which  brought  about  its  fall.     Buonaparte  knew  how  much 
it  would  help  him  to  have  a  Power  within  Germany  itself 
whose   friendship  he   could   always  trust.     It  would  once 
have  been  impossible  to  form  such  a  Power  ;  but  now  all 
was  changed.     To  their  utter  shame,  German  princes  were 
found  who  could  consent,  for  their  own  selfish   ends,  to 
support  a  foreigner  against  the  Fatherland.     On  June  12, 
1806,  the  Kings  of  Bavaria  and  Wiirtemberg,  the  Elector 
of  Baden,  the  Landgrave  of  Hessen,  the  Duke  of  Berg,  the 
Archbishop  of  Rege?isburg,  and  other  princes,  formally  de- 
clared themselves  separated  from  the  Empire,  and  acknow- 
ledged the  French  Emperor  as  their  protector.     The  league 
received  the  name  of  the  Confederation  of  the  Rhine,  and 
undertook  to  aid  Buonaparte  in  war  with  an  army  of  63,000 
men.    The  Archbishop  of  Regensburg,  who  had  hitherto 
been  Electoral  Archchancellor,  was  appointed  by  Buona- 
parte, with^the  title  of  Prince-Primate,  his  representative  in 
the  Confederation. 
/^'fhelTall  of  the  Empire  and  of  the  Kingdom  of  Ger- 
^  many.— The  final  stroke  had  now  been  delivered,  and  the 
ancient  Empire,  the  true  representative  of  the  Empire  of  the 
.    CiEsars,  fell  to  pieces.     On  August  6,  1806,    Francis    II. 
formally  resigned  the   Imperial  crown.     The   kingdom  ol 
Germany,  as  well  as  the  Roman  Empire,  thus  came  to  an 


k 


XVII.] 


" EMPEROR  OF  A USTRIA." 


2C3 


end.  In  1804  Francis,  wholly  mistaking  the  meaning  of  the 
word  Emperor,  had  added  to  his  existing  title  that  of 
Hereditary  Emperor  of  Austria.  In  the  Treaty  of  Pres- 
burg  he  is  called  Emperor  of  Germany  and  Austria. 
From  i8c6  he  was  simply  Emperor  of  Austria;  and  his 
successors  have  borne  the  same  title.  After  his  resignation 
of  the  true  Imperial  crown  Germany  was  no  longer,  even 
in  name,  a  united  State  acknowledging  a  common  head. 


y 


X 


;V 


yv 


; 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

THE  STRUGGLE  WITH  BUONAPARTE. 

Desire  of  Buonaparte  to  humble  Prussia  ;  war  betioeen  France  nud 
Prussia;  battle  of  y^na  {i)^terror  of  the  Prussians  ;  Duonapartl 
enters  Berlin  {2)— battle  of  Friedland;  Peace  of  Tilsit  {z)—^var 
between  Austria  and  France  in  i8og;  battle  of  Wagram;  Peace 
of  Schonbrunn  {4)— loyalty  of  the  Tyrolese;  bravery  of  Hofer; 
shot  by  the  French  ($)^preparation  for  zvar  in  Prussia  (6)— 
Frederick   William  III,  appeals  to  the  Prussian  people  to  arm 
against  the  French;  alliance  between  Prussia  an.,  Russia  (7)— 
battles  of  Liitzen  and  Bautzen;  armistice;  the  allies  joined  by 
Austria  and  Sweden  {S)— victory  of  BlUcher  at  tJie  Katzbach; 
defeat  of  the  allies  before  Dresden;   defeat  of  Vandamme  atid 
j\fgy  {())—the  battle  of  Leipzig  {lo)—t/ie  war  carried  J  nto  France; 
the  First  Peace  of  Paris  {l\)—the  Congress  of  Vientm;  escape  of 
Buonaparte  from  Elba  (12)— M^  battle  of  Waterloo;  the  Second 
Peace  of  Paris  {\i)— changes  of  territory  in  Germany  {14)— the 
Gernrnn  Confederation  {\'^)— German  writers  (i6)^Music   in 
Gert/iany  (17). 

.  I.  War  between  Prussia  and  France.  The  Battle  of 
Jena.— The  selfish  withdrawal  of  Prussia  from  the  struggle 
with  Buonaparte  had  hitherto  saved  it  from  disaster ;  but 
its  turn  now  came.  P'rederick  William  II.  had  died  on 
November.  1797.  He  was  very  extravagant,  and  died  deeply 
in  debt.  Hij»  son  Frederick  Willicim  III.,  who  was  twenty- 
seven  years  old  at  the  time  of  his  accession,  was  a  man 
of  much  worthier  character.     This  sovereign   was   deeply 


[CH.  XVIII.]  THE  BATTLE  OF  JENA. 


20S 


1 


mortified  by  the  formation  of  the  Rhenish  Confederation, 
partly  because  it  threatened  to  destroy  the  supremacy  of 
Prussia  in  North  Germany.     Buonaparte  was  at  no  pains 
to  make  him  friendly.     In  fact,  the  French  Emperor  was 
jealous  of  the  independence  of  Prussia,  and  anxious  for  an 
opportunity  to  humble  it      He  made  proposals  for  the 
restoration  of  Hanover  to  the  King  of  Great  Britain,  and  was 
even  unmanly  enough  to  assail  the  character  of  Louise,  the 
beautiful  and  popular  Prussian  queen.      Stung  by  these 
and  many  other  insults,  Frederick  William  at  length,  in 
1806,  placed  his  army  on  a  war  footing,  and  demanded  that 
the  French  troops  should  quit  Germany.     Unfortunately  the 
Prussians  were  altogether  unfit  for  the  struggle  into  which 
they  were  thus  hurried.     The  main  body  of  the  army  had 
never  had  experience  of  actual  warfare,  while  the  leaders 
were  for  the  most  part  slaves  to  mere  form,  puffed  up 
with   the  glories  of  their  fathers,  and  without  any  true 
notion  of  the   strength  of  the  enemy  they  had  to  deal 
with-      The  aged  Ferdinand,  Duke  of  Brunswick,  who 
again  commanded,  took  up  his  station  to  the  north  of  the 
Thuringian  Forest,  and  awaited  the  approach  of  the  French. 
On   October    10,  a   preliminary   engagement  between   the 
French   and   a  Prussian   corps  under   Prince   Lewis,   the 
King's  cousin,  took  place  near  Saalfeld.     Prince  Lewis  was 
defeated  and  slain.     This  victory  made  the  French  masters 
of  the  Saal,  and  enabled  them  to  cut  off  the  Prussians  from 
communication  with  Saxony,  which  was  an  unwilling  ally 
of  Frederick  William  in  the  war.     On  October  14  a  great 
battle  was  fought  at  Auerstdilt  and  Jena.     The  Duke  of 
Brunswick  commanded  at  tlie  former  place,  and  Pnnce 
Hohenlohe  at  the  latter.  Neither  was  aware  of  the  movements 
of  the  other  ;  and  both  were  defeated.     At  the  beginning 
of  the  battle  the  Duke  of  Brunswick  was  mortally  wounded. 
A  few  regiments  fought  bravely  ;  but  in  the  Prussian  army 


206 


STRUGGLE  WITH  BUONAPARTE.         [chap. 


as  a  whole  there  was  the  utmost  confusion.     Great  numbers 
were  slain,  and  afterwards  2o,cxx)  men  were  made  prisoners. 
2.  Buonaparte  enters  Berlin.— The  results  of  the  battle 
at  Jena  were  even  more  disastrous  than  the  battle  itself.     A 
few  generals  distinguished  themselves  by  their  brave  resist- 
ance. Although  Bliicher,  who  afterwards  became  so  famous, 
was  obliged  in  the  end  to  give  in,  he  did  not  do  so  till,  with 
a  small  body  of  troops,  he  had  done  much  hann  to  the 
French  in  and  near  Liibeck.    Generals  Gneisenau  and  Schill 
continued  to  defend  Colberg  against  a  greatly  superior  force, 
and,  when  Courbiere,  who  held  Graiidcnz,  was   told  that 
there  was  no  longer  a  King  of  Prussia,  and  that  he  had 
better  yield,  he  replied,  "  If  there  is  no  longer  a  King  of 
Prussia,  then  /  will  be  King  in  Graudenz."    These,  however, 
were  exceptions.     The  campaign  had  been  begun  without 
any  definite  plan  ;  and  now  the  whole  country  seemed  over- 
whelmed with  fear.     E-en  Magdeburg,  with  its  garrison  of 
22,000  men,  capitulated  without  striking  a  blow.     The  King 
and  Queen  fled  to  Konigsberg,  and  Buonaparte  took  pos- 
session of  Berlin.     The  people  oi'  the  capital  submitted 
so  readily  that  Buonaparte  affected  to  doubt  whether  he 
ought  to  be  proud  or  ashamed  of  having  conquered  such 
a  nation.     He  surpassed  himself  by  his  robberies  at  this 
time.    Amongst  other  things,  he  took  away  the  sword  of 
Frederick  the  Great,  which  he   pompously   declared   was 
worth  more  than  twenty  millions  of  dollars,  and  the  car  of 
victory  above  the  Brandenburg  gate. 

3.  The  Peace  of  Tilsit— What  remained  of  the  Prussian 
army,  under  Lestocq  and  A'^z/X-r^/////,  joined  the  Russians  on 
the  Prussian  frontier.  On  February  7  and  8,  1 807,  a  battle 
was  fought  at  Fyhm,  near  Konigsberg.  On  the  whole,  the 
advantage  seemed  to  rest  with  the  allies  ;  but  nothing  came 
of  the  battle.  The  decisive  contest  took  place  on  June  12 
near  Friedland,    The  French  gained  a  complete  victory,  and 


xviii.] 


PEACE  OF  TILSIT 


207 


in  a  few  days  held  Konigsberg  and  Tilsit,  Danzig\i2c^\\-vg  been 
compelled  to  yield  in  the  last  days  of  May.  Buonaparte 
had  an  interview  with  the  Russian  Emperor  on  a  raft  in 
the  middle  of  the  Niemcn,  and  induced  him  to  make  peace. 
As  Prussia  could  not  hold  out  without  help,  the  P^ace  of 
Tilsit  was  signed  on  July  9.  Hard  terms  were  exacted  of 
Prussia  by  this  treaty.  The  whole  of  the  territory  between 
the  Elbe  and  the  Rhine  was  taken  from  her,  and,  together 
with  Brutiswick,  Hessen-Cassel,  and  part  of  Hanover, 
formed  into  a  new  kingdom,  called  the  Kingdom  of  West- 
phalia, of  which  Buonaparte's  youngest  brother  Jerome  \\^s 
made  King.  The  Polisn  territory  of  Pioissia  was  called  the 
Grand  Duchy  of  Warsaw,  and  given  to  the  Elector  of 
Saxony,  who,  in  return  for  having  deserted  Prussia  after  the 
battle  of  Jena,  was  raised  to  kingly  rank  by  Buonaparte. 
Danzig  was  declared  a  free  town.  The  Prussian  King  thus 
lost  the  better  part  of  his  territory,  and  no  fewer  than 
5,000,000  subjects.  He  was  obliged  also  to  reduce  his 
army  to  42,000  men,  and  to  pay  an  indemnity  of  140,000,000 
francs.  That  a  country  so  humbled  should  ever  recover 
itseif,  and  strike  another  blow  for  freedom,  seemed  im- 
possible. 

4.  New  war  between  Austria  and  France.  Battle  of 
Wagram.  Peace  of  Schonbrunn.— Austria  had  never  looked 
on  the  results  of  the  battle  of  Austerlitz  as  final.  She  was 
all  along  resolved  to  recover,  if  possible,  her  lost  territory. 
Whilst  Buonaparte  was  occupied  in  Spain,  Francis  made 
great  preparations  for  the  forthcoming  struggle.  The  army 
was  strengthened,  and  the  people  roused  by  every  means 
that  could  excite  their  enthusiasm  to  come  forward  and  join 
the  newly  established  Landwehr.  No  effort  was  spared  to 
make  the  war  in  eveiy  sense  a  people's  war.  The  hopes  of 
Germany  were  raised  to  a  high  pitch  ;  but,  as  the  event 
proved,  the  time  of  her  deliverance  had  not  yet  come.     On 


M 


2oS 


STRUGGLE  WITH  BUONAPARTE,        [chap. 


April  9,  1809,  the  campaign  was  opened  by  the  Archduke 
Charles^  who  commanded  the  whole  army,  crossing  the  Inn 
in  order  to  take  possession  of  Bavaria.    Several  battles  were 
fought  in  quick  succession,  and  in  each  the  Archduke  was 
defeated.    After  a  battle  at  Eckmuhl,  he  fell  back  on  Regens- 
burgj  but  he  was  driven  from  this  position  also,  and  obliged 
to  retreat  towards  Bohemia.    The  right  bank  of  the  Danube 
was  thus  left  open  to  the  French,  and  Buonaparte  at  once 
hastened  to  Vienna,  which,  after  a  slight  resistance,  he 
entered  in  triumph  for  the  second  time,  on  May  12.     The 
Archduke  Charles  was  soon  in  motion  at  the  head  of  his 
troops  ;  and  the  French  crossed  the  Danube  on  a  bridge  oj 
boats,  in  order  to  give  him  battle.     A  fierce  battle  was 
fought  on  May  21  and  22,  on  the  plain  between  Aspern  and 
Esslingen,   in  which   Rudolf  of    Habsburg  had   formed) 
defeated  King  Ottocar  of  Bohemia:  This  time  the  Austrian; 
were  victorious ;  and  there  is  reason  to  suppose  that,  if  theii 
movements  had  been   somewhat  more    rapid,   the  whole 
French  army  might  have  been  cut  off.     On  July  4  Buona- 
parte again  crossed  the  Danube,  his  army  having  meanwhile 
received  vast  reinforcements  ;    and,  on  July  5  and  6,  the 
battle  of  Wagram  was  fought.     Crowds  anxiously  watched 
the  progress  of  the  battle  from  the  towers  of  Vienna.     The 
Austrian  right  wing  was  victorious  ;  but,  the  left  wing  having 
been  surrounded,   the   Archduke   Charles   had   to   retreat. 
The  Austrian  Emperor  now  felt  that  he  would  be  no  longer 
justified  in  continuing  the  war,  and  a  few  days  afterwards 
an  armistice  was  concluded.    The  Peace  of  Schonbrunn  was 
signed  on  October   14.     Besides  ceding  Carniola^  Friuli, 
Croatia^  part  of  Dalmatia,  and    Trieste,  Austria  yielded 
Salzburg  to  Bavaria,  and  the  greater  part  of  Galicia  to 
Russia  and  the  King  of  Saxony. 

5.    Loyalty  of  the  Tyrolese.     Hofer. — During  this  war 
several  brave  struggles  had  been  carried  on  in  different 


4 


XVIII.] 


LOYALTY  OF  THE  TYROLESE. 


209 


parts  of  Germany.     Schill  harassed  the  enemy  for  some 
time  in  Brunswick  and  Mecklenburg ;  but  in  the  end  he 
was  obliged  to  take  refuge  in  Stralsund,  where  he  was 
killed.    Baron  von  Dbrnberg  tried,  but  in  vain,  to  rouse  the 
Hessians   against   King  Jerome.      Frederick    William  of 
Brunswick,  the  son  of  the  Duke  who  fell  at  Auerstadt, 
brought    together    a    body    of   men    which   received   the 
name  of  the  Black   Troop,  and  fought  hard  for  the  re- 
covery of  his  lands.     But  he  and  his  comrades  had  at  last 
to  embark  for  England.   More  memorable  than  these  isolated 
efforts  was  the  great  struggle  of  the  Tyrolese.     Although 
their  country  had  been  annexed  to  Bavaria,  they  had  re- 
mained loyal  to  the  House  of  Habsburg,  and  at  the  out- 
break of  war  rose  as  one  man,  under  the  leadership  of 
Hofer,    Speckbacher    and    Straub.      The    Bavarians    and 
French  were  defeated,  and  driven  from  the  country.     After 
the  battle  of  Wagram,  Marshal  Lefebvre  regained  possession 
of  Innsbruck  ;  but  the  Tyrolese  again  succeeded  in  freeing 
their  country,  and  Hofer  became  for  some  time  head  of  the 
Government.     By  the  peace  of  Schonbrunn,  Bavaria  was 
confirmed  in  her  possession  of  Tyroly  and  Austria  herself 
induced  the  people  to  lay  down  their  arms.     Hofer  again 
rebelled  ;  but  his  contrymen  were  no  longer  able  to  support 
him,  and  he  was  obliged  to  conceal  himself  in  the  snows  of 
the  Alps      Here  he  was  betrayed  to  the  French,  who,  in 
1810,  basely  shot  him,  at  Mantua,  as  a  traitor. 

6.  Preparation  for  war  in  Prussia. — Germany  now  seemed 
to  have  reached  the  lowest  depth  of  humiliation.  Some 
Germans  pretended  to  believe  that  the  state  to  which 
Buonaparte  had  brought  them  was  the  best  for  their  country. 
The  general  feeling  of  the  nation  was  more  healthy.  In 
Prussia  especially  many  hopeful  signs  were  shov*  ing  them- 
selves. The  bitter  experience  through  which  that  country 
had  passed  brought  forth  good  fruit    After  the  Peace  ol 


2IO 


STRUGGLE  WITH  BUONAPARTE,        [chap. 


Tilsit,  the  King  dismissed  Hangwitz,  the  minister  who  was 
chiefly  responsible  for  the  policy  which  Prussia  had  before 
followed.    Haugwitz's  successor,  Stein,  was  one  of  the  ablest 
statesmen  of  his  age.     He  abolished  serfdom,  threw  open 
civil  offices  to  all  classes,  and  induced  the  King  to  concede 
various  municipal  rights  to  the  towns.    The  Kmg  was  finally 
obliged  to  dismiss  him  as  an  enemy  of  France,  and  he  took 
refuge  in  Russia.     By  the  efforts  mainly  of  Wilhelm  von 
Humboldt,  the  school  system  of  Pmssia  was  placed  on  a 
basis  which  even  yet  makes  it  the  envy  of  other  nations 
All  the  leading  public  men  strove  to  awaken  in  the  hearts  ot 
the  people  a  patriotic  feeling  which  should  lead  them  at  the 
proper  moment  to  aid  in  throwing  off  the  French  yoke  from 
Geirnany.     The  "Tugendbund"  or  "  League  of  Virtue    did 
good  service  to  the  national  cause.    It  was  joined  by  men  of 
all  ranks,  but  especially  by  professors  and  students,  who 
thirsted  for  an  opportunity  to  undo  the  disasters  caused  by 
the  faults  and  mistakes  of  the  past.     The  military  system  of 
Prussia  was  as  efficiently  re-organized  as  the  civil.     Under 
Gncisenau  and  Scharnhorst  the  provision  that  the  Prussian 
army  should  not  exceed  42,000  men  was  skilfully  evaded. 
The  army  was  nominally  kept  at  this  figure  ;  but  so  soon  as 
one  set  of  men  was  sufficiently  trained,  it  was  replaced  by 
another.      Thus  all  the  men  of  the  country  were  silently 
made  ready  for  the  great  struggle  to  which  every  one  looked 

forward.  .      «        .         ^««i^ 

7     Frederick  William  appeals  to  the  Prussian  people. 

Alliance  of  Russia  and  Prussia.-Some  years  passed  before 

the  fitting  time  for  attacking  Buonaparte  came.     In  1810  he 

annexed  to  France  the  free  towns  of  Bremen,  Hamburg,  and 

Liibeck,  and  the  whole  northern  coast  of  Germany  as  far  as 

the  Elbe    After  the  disastrous  retreat  from  Russia,  Germans 

felt  that  thev  would  probably  never  have  a  more  favourable 

opportunity'  foi  freeing  themselves.    Prussia  was  the  hrst 


xviii.]    ALLIANCE  OF  RUSSIA  AND  PRUSSIA,        2if 

to  act.  Berlin  being  in  the  power  of  the  French,  Frederick* 
William  went  to  Breslau;  and  from  thence,  on  February  3, 
181 3,  he  issued  an  appeal  to  the  youth  of  Prussia  to  arm  in 
iefence  of  the  Fatherland.  On  February  18  he  met  the 
Russian  Emperor  at  Kalisch;  and  there  an  alliance  was 
formed  against  the  common  enemy.  Years  before  the  same 
monarchs  had  met  at  midnight  at  the  grave  of  Frederick 
the  Great,  and  solemnly  sworn  to  be  true  to  each  other  in 
the  sti-uggle  for  the  deliverance  of  Germany  and  Europe. 
The  time  had  now  come  for  the  fulfilment  of  their  vow. 
On  March  1 5  war  was  formally  declared  by  Prussia  against 
France.  Frederick  William  had  not  overrated  the  patriotism 
of  his  subjects.  Young  men  from  all  parts  of  the  country 
flocked  to  the  national  standard.  They  breathed  a  very 
diflereiit  spirit  from  that  of  the  troops  whom  Buonaparte 
had  so  easily  crushed  at  Jena.  The  Prussian  army  was  by 
this  time  equipped  and  disciplined  in  accordance  with  the 
wants  of  the  age  ;  and  it  was  moved  by  a  common  impulse, 
the  desire  to  avenge  the  injuries  the  French  had  inflicted 
on  Germany,  and  the  resolve  that,  cost  what  it  might,  they 
should  be  driven  from  German  soil.  The  foundations  of 
the  Prussian  military  system  had  been  laid  by  the  creation 
of  the  Landwchr  and  Lamisiurm,  the  latter  intended  for 
the  defence  of  the  homes  of  the  people  in  case  of  utter 
defeat  on  the  field. 

8.  Victories  of  the  French.  Armistice.  The  Allies 
joined  by  Austria  and  Sweden. — The  first  important  en- 
gagement took  place  on  May  2,  1813,  near  Z^y/^-^;/,  where 
Gustavus  Adolphus  was  killed  nearly  two  hundred  years 
before.  Both  Russians  and  Prussians,  fighting  in  view  of  their 
sovereigns,  who  shared  the  fortunes  of  the  whole  campaign, 
behaved  well.  Bliicher  especially  distinguished  himself  by 
the  bravery  with  which  he  led  his  troops  from  assault  to 
assault     But  the  allies  were  greatly  outnumbered  by  the 


< 


tI2 


STRUGGLE  WITH  BUONAPARTE,         [chap. 


French,  and  retreated  in  good  order  to  Bautzen,  The 
King  of  Saxony,  who  had  hitherto  hesitated,  was  now  com- 
pelled by  Buonaparte  to  join  him.  On  May  21  a  second 
battle  was  fought  at  Bautzen,  The  allies,  being  still  inferior 
in  numbers  to  the  French,  were  again  defeated  ;  but  they 
did  more  harm  to  the  enemy  than  they  themselves  suffered, 
and  their  retreat  was  so  skilfully  conducted  that  the  French 
were  unable  to  secure  a  single  trophy.  Buonaparte  pursued 
the  allies  into  Silesia ;  but  on  June  4  he  consented  to  an 
armistice  for  three  weeks.  Whilst  the  armistice  lasted  both 
sides  prepared  vigorously  for  a  renewal  of  the  contest. 
Ajstria  came  forward  and  offered  her  services  as  mediator. 
In  the  negotiations  which  followed  she  was  represented 
by  Prince  Metternich^  a  diplomatist  of  high  distinction, 
whose  ability  Buonaparte  already  knew.  A  Congress 
was  opened  at  Prague  on  July  5,  and  the  armistice  was 
prolonged  till  August  la  Terms  of  peace,  however,  could 
not  be  agreed  upon  ;  and  it  was  resolved  to  go  on  with  the 
war.  But  there  was  now  a  great  change  in  the  relative 
position  of  the  various  parties.  Austria,  which  Buonaparte 
had  hoped  to  keep  neutral,  formally  joined  the  allies. 
Bernadotte,  the  Crown  Prince  of  Sweden,  had  also  come  to 

their  aid. 

9.  Progress  of  the  War.— When  the  war  began  again 
Buonaparte  sent  Marshal  Oudinot  with  an  army  of  80,000 
men  to  seize  Berlin.  On  August  22  this  army  halted  at 
Gross-Beeren^  hoping  to  enter  the  capital  next  day  ;  but 
during  the  night  it  was  fiercely  attacked  by  a  Prussian  force 
under  General  Bulou\  and  driven  towards  the  Elbe. 
Buonaparte  himself  had  set  out  for  Silesia  in  order  to  attack 
Bliicher;  but,  learning  that  the  main  division  of  the  allied 
army,  under  Prince  Schwartzenberg^  was  advancing  from 
Bohemia  on  Dresden,  he  was  obliged  to  retreat  on  the  very 
day  on  which  Marshal  Oudinot  was  defeated.      He  left  in 


XVIII.] 


THE  BATTLE  OF  LEIPZIG, 


213 


I 


Silesia,  under  Marshal  Macdonald,  an  army  of  80,000  men. 
Blucher,  who  had  avoided  an  engagement  with  the  main 
French  army,  at  once  advanced  to  meet  Macdonald.     On 
August  26  the  two  armies  stood  opposite  each  other,  separ- 
ated by  a  stream  called  the  Katzbach.     Blucher  allowed  a 
number   of  the   enemy  to   cross   this   stream,   and   then 
exclaimed,    "  Now  my  lads,  there  are  enough  of  them— 
forward  !"     The  Prussians  and  Russians  obeyed  heartily, 
and  the  French  were  utterly  routed.   From  this  day,  Bliicher, 
who  was  a  great  favourite  with  the  soldiers,  was  known  as 
Marshal  "  Vorwdrts."     He  was  created  Field  Marshal,  and 
afterwards  Prince  Wahlstadt.   Wliile  the  battle  of  the  Katz- 
bach was  being  won,  and  on  the  following  day,  another  was 
fought  before  Dresden.    On  both  days  the  allies  were  unsuc- 
cessful.   Having  suffered  great  losses,  they  retreated  towards 
Bohemia.     A  few  days  afterwards  they  partly  made  up  for 
this   defeat  by  a  victory  gained  over  General   Vandamine 
near   Toplitz.     Vandamme   himself  and    10,000  men  were 
made  prisoners.     Buonaparte  now  tried  a  second  time  to 
gain  possession  of  Berlin.     On  September  6,  Marshal  Ney 
came  up  with  the  Prussians  at  Dennewitz,  and  at  once 
attacked  them.     The  French  army  was  almost  double  that 
of  the  Prussians,  and  fought  with  great  bravery  ;   but  the 
Prussians   stoutly   resisted  till  the  Russians  and  Swedes, 
under  Bernadotte,  arrived,  when  the  French  were  forced  to 
give  way.     They  lost  a  large  number  of  men,  and  were 
pursued  as  far  as  the  Elbe. 

10.  The  Battle  of  Leipzig.— During  the  month  of  Sep- 
tember, Buonaparte  strove  hard  to  bring  the  main  allied;.' 
army  to  a  general  engagement ;  but  this  the  allies  cautiousV 
avoided.  At  length  Blucher,  after  some  successful  figl:tmg, 
joined  the  army  of  Bernadotte  at  Diibcn.  About  t2ie  same 
time  the  main  army,  leaving  Bohemia,  marched  through  the 
passes  of  the  Erz  mounuins,  and  reached  the  plams  of 


% 


214 


STRUGGLE  WITH  BUONAPARTE, 


[chap. 


Saxony.  It  was  obvious  that  the  allies  intended  to  concen 
trate  behind  Buonaparte,  and  cut  off  his  communication 
with  France.  He  therefore  left  Dresden,  and  retreated 
towards  Leipzig,  which  he  entered  on  October  14.  He  did 
this  partly  because  he  had  been  deserted  by  the  Bavarians, 
who,  now  that  he  had  begun  to  be  unsuccessful,  entered  into 
an  alliance  with  Austria.  The  greater  part  of  the  allied 
army  was  already  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Leipzig,  so  that 
the  decisive  contest  was  evidently  at  hand.  Prince 
Schwartzenberg  and  Buonaparte,  aware  of  the  great  issues 
depending  on  the  approaching  battle,  did  everything  they 
could  to  arouse  the  enthusiasm  of  their  troops  ;  and  their 
efforts  were  not  without  effect.  The  battle  began  on  the  morn- 
ing of  October  16.  In  the  evening  the  position  of  the  armies 
was  very  much  the  same  as  in  the  morning,  except  that 
Bliicher  had  got  the  better  of  Marshal  Ney  at  the  village  of 
Mockern.  But  this  time  the  French  were  greately  outnum- 
bered by  the  allies,  and  the  latter  expected  fresh  troops. 
Buonaparte  saw  therefore  how  the  battle  must  end,  and  on 
the  17th  made  proposals  for  an  armistice,  offering  terms  highly 
favourable  to  the  allies  ;  but  the  latter  declined  to  grant  his 
request.  On  the  iSth,  Bernadotte  having  meanwhile  joined 
the  allies,  the  battle  was  renewed.  Whilst  it  was  going  on, 
the  troops  of  Saxony  and  Wiirtemberg  went  over  to  the 
enemy.  On  this  terrible  day  the  French  kept  up  their  old 
fame  ;  but  in  spite  of  all  their  efforts  they  were  steadily 
forced  back,  and  when  night  put  an  end  to  fighting  it  was 
plain  that  a  retreat  could  not  be  avoided.  It  began  at  dawn 
n  the  19th.  As  the  troops  were  crossing  the  Elstcr,  the 
s  stormed  the  gates  of  Leipzig,  and  caused  much  con- 
fusion. A  large  part  of  the  army  had  not  yet  crossed  when 
the  only  bridge  open  to  them  was,  probably  by  mistake, 
suddenly  blovn  up.  Many  of  those  left  behind  were  slain  ; 
others  were  diavned,  and  upwards  of  15,000  were  made 


XVIII.] 


FIRST  PEACE  OF  PARIS, 


21S 


prisoners.  Great  quantities  of  cannon  and  ammunition  fell 
into  the  hands  of  the  allies.  In  this  fearful  battle  Buona- 
parte lost  upwards  of  70,000  men  ;  and  the  allies  not  fewer 
than  40,000.  As  the  Emperor  Alexander  and  King  Frede- 
rick William,  and,  a  few  hours  afterwards,  the  Emperor 
Francis,  with  their  generals,  triumphantly  entered  Leipzig, 
all  felt  that  the  chief  part  of  their  task  was  fulfilled,  and 
that  the  deliverance  of  Germany  was  now  a  question  of  only 
a  very  short  time. 

II.  The  War  carried  into  France.    The  First  Peace  of 
Paris.— As    the    French    were    retreating,    the    Bavarian 
General  Wrede  tried  to  stop  their  passage  at  Hanau,  but 
was  himself  defeated.      Buonaparte  was  thus  enabled  to 
push  on  towards  the  Rhine,  which  he  crossed  at  Mainz  on 
November  2.     His  power  in  Germany  was  now  for  ever  at 
an  end.     The  German  princes  who  had  adhered  to  him 
deserted  him.     The  fortresses  garrisoned  by  his  troops  on 
the  Elbe,  Oder,  and  Vistula  surrendered  ;  the  Rhenish  Con- 
federation was  broken  up  ;    the   Kingdom    of   Westphalia 
disappeared;    the  Elector  of  Hessen  and  the   Dukes  of 
Brunswick  and  Oldenburg  took  possession  of  their  heredi- 
tary territories,  and  Hanover  was  given  back  to  the  King  of 
Great  Britain.     But  the  allies  were  not  satisfied.     They  felt 
that,  so  long  as  Buonaparte  occupied  the  throne  of  France, 
they  were  not  safe.      They  therefore  resolved  to  carry  the 
war  into  France  itself,  and  not  to  sheathe  the  sword  till  the 
power  of  their  enemy  had  been  for  ever  crushed.   A  Prussian 
army,  under  Bulow,  marched  northwards  to  the  aid  of  the 
Dutch.     Schwartzenberg,  with  the  main  army,  crossed  the 
Rhine  at  Basel.      Between  these  two  was  Bliicher,  who 
entered  France  between  Mainz  and  Coblentz.     On  January 
29, 1814,  he  was  defeated  by  Buonaparte  ;  but  on  February  i 
his  army  joined  that  of  Schwartzenberg,  and  the  two  to- 
gether gained  a  brilliant  victory  at  La  Rothiere.    They  then 


2l6 


STRUGGLE  WITH  BUONAPARTE.         [chap. 


separated.  The  result  of  their  separation  was  that  Buona- 
parte gained  several  victories.  On  March  9  and  10,  how- 
ever, the  French  were  defeated  dX'^Laon  by  Blucher,  who 
had  joined  the  army  of  Biilow.  Having  attacked  Prince 
Schwartzenberg  at  Arcis-sur-Aube  on  March  20  without 
any  definite  result,  Buonaparte  formed  the  bold  plan  of 
getting  behind  the  main  allied  army,  in  the  hope  that  by 
cutting  off  their  communication  with  the  Rhine  he  would 
induce  them  to  give  up  the  idea  of  advancing  on  Paris. 
This  scheme  was  found  out  by  the  allies.  Fortune  had  thus 
thrown  a  great  opportunity  into  their  hands,  and  they  did 
not  let  it  escape  them.  A  force  of  10,000  men,  under  the 
Russian  General  Winzingerode^  was  left  to  deceive  Buona- 
parte, while  the  armies  of  Schwartzenberg  and  Bliichcr 
marched  rapidly  towards  the  capital.  They  arrived  there 
on  March  29  ;  next  day  Paris  surrendered  ;  and  on  the  31st 
the  Emperor  Alexander  and  King  Frederick  William  entered 
the  city  at  the  head  of  their  troops.  Two  months  afterwards 
the  First  Peace  of  Paris  was  concluded  between  the  allies 
and  Lewis  XVII I.  of  France,  Buonaparte  having  in  the 
meantime  abdicated  and  been  banished  to  Elba.  By  this 
treaty  all  the  territory  taken  from  Germany  since  1792  was 
given  back.  No  money  indemnity  was  demanded ;  and 
France  was  allowed  to  keep  even  the  art  treasures  which 
had  been  stolen  from  Germany. 

12.  The  Congress  of  Vienna.  Escape  of  Buonaparte  from 
Elba. — The  task  now  before  the  conquerors  of  Buonaparte 
was  to  bring  back  order  to  Germany.  The  great  Congress 
of  Vienna  was  opened  on  October  r,  1814.  Besides  the 
Emperors  oi  Austria  and  of  Russia^  there  were  present  the 
Kings  of  Prussia^  of  Denmark^  of  Bavaria,  and  of  Wiirtem- 
berg^  most  of  the  German  Princes,  and  the  representatives 
of  the  various  German  States  and  of  all  European  Powers 
except  Turkey,      The  Congress  soon  found  that  it  would 


I 


XVIII.] 


THE  BATTLE  OF  WATERLOO, 


217 


have  to  overcome  great  difficulties.  Prussia  wished  to  be 
rewarded  for  its  sacrifices  by  the  annexation  of  Saxony  ; 
Russia  asked  the  whole  of  Poland.  The  other  Powers 
would  not  listen  to  these  demands,  and  disputes  ran  so  high 
that  the  peace  of  Europe  seemed  to  be  once  more  threa- 
tened. Suddenly,  on  March  7,  181 5,  when  a  compromise 
was  being  arrived  at,  all  were  startled  by  the  alarming 
news  that  Buonaparte  had  escaped  from  Elba,  was  gather- 
ing around  him  the  military  strength  of  P'rance,  and 
preparing  to  begin  another  war.  The  subjects  of  dispute 
which  had  before  seemed  so  important  were  at  once  for- 
gotten in  the  thought  of  the  common  danger.  Buonaparte 
was  declared  an  outlaw.  A  new  coalition  was  formed  by 
the  Great  Powers  represented  at  Vienna ;  and  measures 
were  taken  for  the  raising  of  enormous  armies.  Germany 
prepared  enthusiastically  for  her  own  defence.  She  was 
resolved  that  the  present  should  be  the  last  time  Buona- 
parte should  disturb  Europe.  "^ 

13.  The  Battle  of  Waterloo.  The  second  Peace  of  Paris. 
—When  the  campaign  began,  in  June,  181 5,  Prince  Schwariz- 
enbere-  held  the  Lower  and  Middle  Rhine,  and  the  Duke  0/ 
Wellington  had  taken  up  his  post  in  Holland  ;  Bliicher's 
headquarters  were  at  Liege.  The  allies  were  not  at  first 
successful.  On  June  16  the  Prussians  were  attacked  near 
Ligny,  and  defeated  with  great  loss.  Bliicher  himself 
narrowly  escaped  being  killed  or  made  prisoner.  On  the 
same  day  an  engagement  took  place  at  (2uatre  Bras;  but 
m  this  the  French  were  unsuccessful.  At  Quatre  Bras  the 
Black  Troop  of  Frederick  William  of  Brunswick  again  dis- 
tinguished itself ;  but  Frederick  William  himself  was  killed. 
On  June  18  the  great  battle  of  Waterloo,  called  by  the 
Germans  La  Belle  Alliance,  was  fought.  On  the  night 
before  the  battle  Blucher  promised  to  come  to  the  help 
of  WcUington,  and,   although  he  had  great  difficulty  in 


\ 


2l8 


STRUGGLE  WITH  BUONAPARTE, 


[chap. 


doing  so,  he  kept  his  word.  For  eight  hours  the  Engl'th 
army  defended  itself  with  splendid  bravery  ;  when  Bliicher 
came  up,  Buonaparte  knew  that  all  was  lost  The  defeat 
of  the  French  v  as  complete.  They  were  pursued  so  vigor- 
ously by  the  Prussians  under  Gneisenau^  and  cut  ofif  in  such 
vast  numbers,  that  this  single  battle  put  an  end  to  the  war. 
Even  Buonaparte  felt  that  further  resistance  was  impossible. 
On  July  7  the  allies  were  once  more  in  possession  of  Paris  ; 
and  on  November  20  the  Second  Peace  of  Paris  was  signed. 
The  German  Powers  wished  to  recover  Elsass  and  Lorraine; 
but  they  had  to  content  themselves  with  the  boundaries 
which  existed  before  1790,  and  which  differed  only  slightly 
from  those  fixed  by  the  First  Peace.  France  undertook  to 
pay  an  indemnity  of  700  million  francs,  to  be  divided  among 
the  allies.  She  had  also  to  restore  the  art  treasures  which 
Buonaparte  had  stolen. 

14.  Changes  of  territory  in  Germany. — Whilst  the  armies 
of  the  allies  carried  on  the  war,  the  Congress  of  Vienna  had 
continued  its  sittings.  The  renewal  of  the  struggle  made 
all  parties  more  moderate,  so  that  the  deliberations  of  the 
Congress  were  brought  to  an  end  in  June.  Besides  her 
former  Italian  and  Illyrian  possessions,  Austria  received 
Tyrol,  Salzburg,  Vorarlberg,  and  the  Innviertcl.  Prussia 
obtained  all  that  she  gave  up  in  the  Treaty  of  Tilsit 
and  the  Grand  Duchy  of  Posen,  Sweiiish  Pomerauia,  the 
northern  part  of  Saxony,  the  Duchies  of  Westphalia  and 
Berg,  and  the  Rhine  country  between  Mainz  and  Aachen. 
Bavaria  kept  Ansbach  and  Baireuth,  and,  in  return  foi  terri- 
tory ceded  to  Austria,  received  M^iirzbnrg and  Aschaffenburg^ 
together  with  the  Upper  Rhenish  Palatinate,  thenceforth 
known  as  Rhenish  Baiuiria.  Hanover  also  received  some 
new  ]  mds,  and,  as  Bavaria,  Wiirtemberg,  and  Saxony  had 
already  been,  was  made  a  Kingdom.  The  remaining 
''lernian  States  kept  very  much  the  same  boundaries  as 


i 

/ 


XVIII.]        THE  GERMAN  CONFEDERATICN 


2i 


those  they  had  possessed  during  the  time  of  the  Rhenish 
Confederation. 

1 5.  The  German  Confederation.— The  jealousies  of  Austria 
and  Prussia,  and  the  unwillingness  of  Bavaria  and  Wiirtem- 
berg, did  not  permit  that  the  Empire  should  be  restored.  The 
States  of  Germany,  therefore,  joined  in  a  great  Confederation. 
It  was  made  up  of  thirty-nine   States,  taking   in  the  free 
towns  of  Liibeck,  Hamburg,  Bremen,  and  Frankfurt.     Each 
State  was  to  remain  independent  in  matters  affecting  it" 
self  alone,  the  object  of  the  Confederation  being  merely  the 
regulation  of  those  affairs  common  to  all  German  States 
equally.    A  permanent  Diet,  consisting  of  the  plenipoten- 
tiaries of  the  States,  was  to  hold  its  sittings  in  Fra7ikfurt-on 
the-Main,  the  representatives  of  Austria  presiding.      The 
members  of  the  Confederation  agreed  never  to  declare  war 
against  each  other,  or  to  form  alliances  with  foreign  powers 
which  should  in  any  way  be  hurtful  to  a  German  State. 
All  subjects  of  dispute  between  the  various  States  were  to  be 
referred  for  settlement  to  the   Diet.     Each  State  was  to 
contribute,  according  to  its  population,  to  the  Confederate 
army,  whose  commanders  the  Diet  were  to  appoint.     Tiie 
fortresses  of  Luxemburg,  Landau,  and  Mainz  were  declared 
the   property    of  the    Confederation,    and   garrisoned    by 
its   troops.      The  act  of  Confederation  decreed   that  con- 
stitutional government  should  be  set  up  in  each  State,  and 
that  the  meml^ers  of  all  Christian  sects  should  have  equal 
civil  and  political  rigV  ts. 

16.  German  Writers.— Although  Germany  was  humbled 
beyond  all  past  experience  in  her  stmggle  with  Buonaparte, 
her  intellectual  life  was  never  so  rich  or  comprehensive  as 
at  this  time.  The  divisions  which  split  up  Germany  kept 
down  everything  noble  in  her  national  history  for  some  time 
after  the  peace  of  Westphalia.  In  the  end  they  were  not 
altogether  unfavourable  to  literature,  for,  as  politics  and 


STRUGGLE  WITH  BUONAPARTE.         [chap. 


commerce  did  not  afford  the  same  outlet  for  the  energies  of 
the  people  as  existed  in  free  countries,  above  all  in  England, 
the  higher  class  of  minds  turned  aside  and  devoted  them- 
selves wholly  to  thought  and  study.  In  the  latter  part  of 
the  seventeenth  and  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century, 
Gottfried  Wilhelm  Freiherr  von  Leibnitz  had  a  European 
reputation  as  one  of  the  deepest  and  most  original  thinkers 
of  his  time.  It  was  characteristic  of  the  age  that  he 
did  not  write  any  of  his  many  works  in  German.  His 
philosophical  system  was  further  developed  by  Christian 
Freiherr  von  Wolf.  By  his  "  Kritik  of  Pure  Reason," 
published  in  1781,  Immanuel  Kant  began  a  new  epoch 
in  philosophy.  Fichte  was  also  a  distinguished  philoso- 
pher ;  and  Schelling  and  Hegel  had  already  made  them- 
selves known  as  thinkers.  Fichte  was  one  of  the  noble 
band  who  not  only  roused  the  nation  to  resist  the  French, 
but  themselves  marched  against  the  enemy.  Hegel  put 
the  last  touches  to  his  first  great  work  in  his  quiet  home 
in  Jena  as  the  artillery  of  the  contending  armies  in  the 
battle  of  Jena  was  thundering  outside.  Barthold  Georg 
Niebiihr  was  one  of  a  number  of  writers  who  were  at 
this  time  writing  history  according  to  a  wholly  new  method 
Among  the  scholars  who  had  given  a  powerful  impulse  to 
learning  were  Winckelmann  and  Heyne.  In  the  latter  part 
of  the  seventeenth  century,  German  poetry  held  a  very  low 
place.  The  so-called  Secofid  Silesian  School  had  great 
fame  ;  but  it  was  altogether  without  genius.  A  number  01 
court  poets  wrote  chiefly  under  French  influence.  A  freer 
style  was  brought  in  at  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth 
century  by  Von  Hugedow^  Von  Hallcr^  a  Swiss  poet,  who 
was  also  a  man  of  science  and  a  philosopher,  and  Gellert, 
whose  works  were  rea<l  by  all  classes.  The  first  of  the  great 
classical  poets  of  Germany  was  Friedrich  Gottlieb  Klopstock 
who  was  far  above  his  immediate  predecessors  in  richness 


XVIII.] 


GERMAN  WRITERS. 


221 


of  imagination  and  depth  of  feeling.      His  chief  work  is 
"The  Messiah."      Christoph  Martin  PVie land  also  takes  a 
high  place  as  a  clear  and  versatile  writer.     He  had  the 
special  merit  of  arousing  some  interest  in  literature  among 
the  higher  classes  of  society.     "Oberon,"  a  poem,  and 
"  Agathon "  a  prose  romance,  are  usually  thought  the  best 
of  his  many  writings.     A  far  greater  writer  than  either 
Wieland  or   Klopstock  was  their  contemporary,  Gotthold 
Ephraim  Lessing.      He  was  the  founder  of  scientific  criti- 
c'sm,  and  gave  to  German  prose  a  terseness,  clearness,  and 
strength   it   had   never  hitherto  possessed.     He  was  also 
distinguished  as  a  dramatic  poet     Among  his  works  may 
be  named  "  Laokoon,"  "  Emilia  Galotti,"  and  "  Nathan  the 
Wise."     Another  famous  writer  of  this  time  was  Johann 
Gottfried  von  Herder^  who  was  at  once  a  poet,  a  critic,  and 
a  philosopher.     High  above  all  these  rose  the  illustrious 
Johann    Wolfgang  von    Goethe.      He  holds    in   German 
literature  the  place  held  by  Shakespeare  in  English,  and 
by  Dante  in  Italian  literature.     Perhaps  his  greatest  work 
is  "  Faust."     Specially  remarkable  for  perfect  finish  of  style 
are  "Torquato  Tasso"  and  "  Iphigenie."      The  poetry  of 
common  life  was  never  more  finely  brought  out  than  in 
"  Hermann  and  Dorothea  ;"  and  Goethe's  lyrics  are  prob- 
ably  the  most  beautiful  of  any  written  in  modern  times. 
His  chief  prose  work  is  "  Wilhelm  Meister."    Friedrich 
von  Schiller  is  generally  supposed  to  rank  next  to  Goethe 
in  the  list  of  German  poets.      He  is  perhaps  even   more 
popular   than   Goethe,  for  it  was  he  who  first  gave  full 
expression  to  the  awakening  national  life  of  Germany.     His 
chief  writings   are  dramatic  ;    and  of  these  the  best  are 
" Wallenstein,"  "Maria  Stuart,"  and  "William  Tell."     His 
"  Song  of  the  Bell"  is  the  most  famous  of  his  shorter  pieces. 
Jean  Paul  Friedrich  Richter  wrote  an  extremely  difficult 
Style ;  but  he  is  one  of  the  greatest  of  German  humourists. 


222  STRUGGLE  WITH  BUONAPARTE,  [ch.  xvili.] 

Of  his  many  romances,  "  Titan,"  and  "  Flower,  Fruit  and 
Thorn  Pieces,"  are  usually  considered  among  the  best. 
Of  the  poets  who  roused  the  enthusiasm  of  the  nation  in  the 
war  of  freedom,  the  best  known  were  Arndt  and  Kbrtier. 
The  latter  died  fighting  against  the  French. 

17.  Music  in  Germany. — Germany  has  long  been  distin- 
guished as  a  music-loving  nation.  No  other  country  has 
had  so  many  composers  of  the  highest  rank.  Of  those 
whom  she  produced  in  the  eighteenth  century  the  most 
distinguished  were  Sebastian  Bach^  Handel^  Haydn^  and 
MosarL 


CHAPTER  XIX. 


REVOLUTIONARY  MOVEMENTS. 

Th '  demand  for  constitutional  government  (i)— M^  desire  for  unity; 
murder  of  Kotzebue;   action  of  the  Governments  {2)~-popular 
risings  in  1830;  Hot  in  Frankfurt  in  1833  {z)-Lewis  I.  of 
Bavaria;    the    Customs   Union   {A,)-death  of  Francis    I.   of 
Austria;  tyranny  of  King  Ernst  August  of  Hanover  {s)-death 
of  Frederick  William  III.  of  Prussia;  high  expectations  raised 
by  Frederick   William  IV.;   he  summons  a  United  Diet  {d)— 
religious  movements  in  Prussia  {'j)-effect  of  the  French  Revolu- 
Hon  of  1848  in  the  smaller  States  (8)-//^  Revolution  in  Austria 
and  Prussia  {9)-the  Provisionat  Parliament  in  Frankfurt; 
recognised  by  the  Diet;    rebellion  in    Upper  Baden  {\o)-tht 
National  Assembly  in  Frankfurt  {ll)-action  of  Christian  VIII. 
0/ Denmark  with  regard  to  Schleswig-Holstein ;  Frederick  VIL 
adopts  the  same  course;  a  provisional  Government  set  up  in  the 
Duchies;    the  Frankfurt  Assembly  supports  them;    war  with 
Denmark;  an  armistice  concluded  by  Prussia,  and  ratified,  after 
some  delay,  by  tJie  Frankfurt  Assembly;  riot  in  Frankfurt,  and 
attempted    Revolution    in    Upper    Baden    {l2)-the    Prussian 
Assembly;    a  new  Parliament  summoned  (iz)—the  Austrian 
Diet;  Resolutions  in  Hungary  and  in    Vienna;   the  Emperor 
Ferdinand  abdicates,  and  is  succeeded  by  Francis  Joseph  (14)— 
dissensions  in  the  Frankfurt  Assembly  as  to  the  relation  oj 
Austria  to  Germany;  the  Imperial  title  offered  to  the  King  oJ 
Puasia,  and  refused  {^^)-the  National  Assembly  remoi'esto 
Stuttgart,  and  is  dispersed  by  the  King  of  Wtirtemberg  {16)- 
disturbances  in  Saxony,   Rhenish  Bavaria,  and  Baden  (17)- 


I 


/ 


224 


/^£  VOL  UTIONAR  V  MO  VEMBNTS.         [chap. 


the  Revolution  in  Hungary;  ended  by  the  surrender  of  Gbrgey  (18) 
— Constitutional  Government  set  up  in  Prussia  (19) — the  Ger- 
man Union;  Parliament  of  the  Union  in  Erfurt;  Austria  tries 
to  reconstitute  the  Confederation  {20)— dispute  between  the  Elector 
of  Hesscn  Casscl  and  the  Chambers;  Austria  and  Prussia 
interfere;  civil  war  avoided  {21)— the  Frankfurt  Diet  restored 
(22) — the  war  with  Denmark;  Prussia  makes  peace;  defeat  oj 
the  Schleswig-Holstein  army  {2^)— treaty  of  Commerce  between 
Prussia  and  Austria  (24). 

1.  The  demand  for  free  government — The  Act  of 
Confederation  promised  that  constitutional  government 
should  be  set  up  in  the  various  States  of  Germany.  The 
people  had  made  so  many  sacrifices  in  the  great  struggle 
with  Buonaparte  that  those  who  disliked  the  old  despotic 
system  felt  they  had  a  right  to  insist  that  this  promise 
should  be  kept.  The  princes,  however,  soon  forgot  what 
they  owed  to  their  subjects.  Between  181 5  and  1830 
constitutions  were  granted  by  Sachsen-Weimar,  Baden, 
Bavaria,  Wiirtemberg,  Hessen-Darmstadt,  and  other  small 
States  ;  but  in  reality  very  little  change  was  made  in  the 
government  of  these  countries.  Frederick  William  III.  of 
Prussia  seemed  at  first  inclined  to  yield  to  the  demand  for 
popular  representation ;  but  he  contented  himself  with 
setting  up  a  number  of  Provincial  Diets.  Prince  Metternich^ 
the  ruling  spirit  of  the  Austrian  Government,  was  a  resolute 
enemy  of  the  constitutional  system. 

2.  The  desire  for  Unity. — The  feeling  of  national  life, 
which  had  never  been  very  strong  after  the  Great  Inter- 
regnum, and  which  almost  died  out  durirrg  the  Thirty 
Years'  War,  had  for  some  time  been  growing  up  again. 
The  famous  deeds  of  Frederick  the  Great  had  made  the 
people  once  more  proud  of  the  common  German  name  ; 
and  this  feeling  had  been  strengthened  by  the  war  of  free- 
dom, and  by   the  achievements   of  Germans   in  science, 


XIX.] 


THE  DESIRE  FOR  UNITY. 


225 


literature,  and  art      There   was  now,   therefore,  ?   veiy 
general  desire  that  Germany  should  cease  to  be  2.  mere 
collection  of  States   only  nominally  united.       Few  were 
quite  satisfied  with  the  Confederation.     It  left  each  State 
practically  independent,  and  every  one  knew  that  in  a  short 
time  it  would  lose  any  little  power  it  had  ever  had.     The 
general    discontent    showed    itself   most   at   the  Univer- 
sities.    A  large  party  among  the  professors  and  students 
constantly  contrasted  the  disunion  and  weakness  of  Ger- 
many in  their  day  with  its  power  and  fame  when  the  Empire 
was  at  its  highest  in  the  Middle  Ages  ;  others,  knowing 
that  the  old  state  of  things  could  never  be  brought  back, 
wished  for  some  form  of  union  more  suited  to  the  wants  of 
their  own  time.     The  Governments  of  the  various  States  for 
the  most  part  disliked  this  movement  in  favour  of  unity. 
Kotzebue^  a  well-known  writer  of  plays,  ridiculed  those  who 
wasted  time  in  what  he  thought  idle  dreams,  and  was  so 
much  disliked  that  at  last,  in  18 19,  a  young  student  mur- 
dered him.     The  Governments  believed,  or  pretended  to 
believe,  that  this  was  the  result  of  a  widespread  conspiracy, 
and  resolved  to  take  severe  measures.    A  conference  of 
ministers  was  held  at  Carlsbad  to  consider  the  whole  matter. 
Many  young  men  were  thrown  into  prison  ;  various  pro- 
fessors— among  them,  A  nidi,  whose  songs  had  done  much 
to  keep  up  the  national  enthusiasm  in  the  late  war — were 
deprived  of  their  offices  ;  and  strict  limits  were  put  to  the 
freedom  of  the  press  and  the  Universities.   The  Confederate 
Diet  accepted  the  decisions  of  the  Conference,  and   ap- 
pointed a  Commission  to  find  out  and  punish  revolutionists. 
The  desire  for  unity,  however,  instead  of  being  crushed, 
became  stronger  and  stronger.     The  wish  for  free  govern- 
ment also  became  more  common.     The  great  question  that 
arose  in  many  minds  was  whether  the  nation  should  try  to 
obtain  unity  before  freedom,  or  freedom  before  unity.    All 

p 


226 


RE  VOL  UTi  ONAR  Y  MO  VEdfiENTS.         [chap. 


XIX.] 


FREDERICK  WILLIAM  IV, 


227 


knew   that   if  either   were  gained  the  other  would  soon 
follow. 

3.  Popular  rising^s  in  1830.  Riot  at  Frankfurt  in  1833. — 
The  French  Revolution  in  1830  caused  great  commotion  in 
Germany.  In  Prussia  and  Austria  there  was  little  disturbance 
of  the  peace  ;  but  in  several  of  the  smaller  States  there  were 
popular  risings.  In  Brunswick  the  palace  of  the  Duke, 
who  was  greatly  disliked,  was  burned  to  the  ground  ;  and 
he  himself  had  some  difficulty  in  escaping.  His  brother, 
who  succeeded  him,  granted  the  required  constitution. 
Constitutions  more  or  less  liberal  were  also  conceded  by  the 
Governments  of  Saxony,  Hessen-Cassel,  Sachsen-Altenburg, 
and  Hanover.  On  April  3,  1833,  a  riot  took  place  at 
Frankfurt  A  number  of  armed  men,  chiefly  students  and 
journalists,  attacked  the  town  guard,  and  freed  a  few 
political  prisoners.  They  would  also  have  dispersed  the 
Diet ;  but  they  were  themselves  attacked  and  overcome  by 
the  troops.  Thi:i  paltry  disturbance  was  made  an  excuse 
for  still  more  harsh  measures  against  the  Universities  and 
the  press. 

4.  Lewis  I.  of  Bavaria-  The  Customs  Union.— The 
King  of  Bavaria  at  this  time  was  Lewis  I.  He  succeeded 
his  father,  Maximilian,  in  1825.  Lewis  was  a  man  of 
culture  and  artistic  taste.  He  brought  the  University  of 
Landshut  to  Munich,  and  spent  large  sums  in  extending 
and  beautifying  his  capital.     He  was  so  liberal  a  patron  of 

.  art  that  artists  came  from  all  parts  of  Germany  to  Munich. 
Soon  after  he  became  King  he  made  a  treaty  with  Wiirtcm- 
berg,  regulating  the  customs  of  the  two  countries.  This 
was  the  beginning  of  a  movement  of  great  importance  to 
Germany.  Prussia  united  with  various  North  German 
States,  and  the  Central  States  united  among  themselves,  for , 
the  regulation  of  the  customs.  In  1828  the  idea  of  a 
Customs  Union^  which  should  take  in  all  German  States, 


was  started  ;  and  it  soon  gained  ground.  As  Prussia  was 
evidently  best  fitted  to  form  the  centre  for  a  movement  of 
this  kind,  one  Government  after  another  concluded  with  it 
the  necessary  treaties.  Thus  was  gradually  formed  the 
Customs  Union,  which  was  in  the  end  joined  by  nearly  all 
Germany.  It  removed  many  useless  restrictions  from 
commerce,  and  kept  alive  in  the  minds  of  the  people  the 
idea  of  that  complete  unity  which  many  had  so  long  wished 
in  vain.  It  also  added  to  the  already  great  influence  of 
Prussia  in  Germany. 

5.  Death  of  Francis  I.  of  Austria.  King  Ernst  August  of 
Hanover. — On  March  2,  1835,  Francis  /.,  the  first  Emperor 
of  Austria,  died.  He  was  succeeded  by  his  son,  the  weak- 
minded  Ferditiand,  under  whorr.  the  policy  of  Austria 
continued  very  much  the.  same.  Prince  Metternich  still 
taking  the  leading  place  in  the  Government.  By  the  death 
of  William  IV,  of  England,  in  1837,  the  Kingdom  of 
Hanover  passed  to  Ernst  Ai^gust,  William's  brother.  The 
new  King  was  harsh  and  violent  He  withdrew  the  con- 
stitution granted  in  1833,  and  set  up  in  its  place  another 
far  less  free,  which  had  been  conceded  at  a  former  time. 
Seven  distinguished  professors  of  Gottingcn — amongst  them 
the  brothers  Grijntn — who  protested  against  this  tyranny, 
were  dismissed  from  their  offices.  A  revolt  which  resulted 
among  the  students  was  not  put  down  till  some  blood  had 
been  shed. 

6.  Death  of  Frederick  William  III.  of  Prussia.  Frederick 
William  IV. — Frederick  William  III.  of  Prussia,  who  had 
seen  so  many  changes  of  fortune,  died  on  June  7,  1840.  Great 
hopes  were  raised  by  his  son  and  successor,  Frederick 
William  IV.  This  king  began  his  reign  by  granting  a 
a  pardon  to  all  political  prisoners,  and  spoke  eloquently  of 
the  duties  of  a  sovereign.  At  the  ceremony  which  took 
place  when  the  works  for  completing  the  cathedral  of  Koln 


.3!28 


RE  VOLUTIONAh  Y  MOVEMENTS.         [chap 


were  begun,  he  uttered  words  full  of  promise  for  the  future 
unity  of  Germany.  The  expectations  formed  as  to  the  reign 
of  Frederick  William  IV.  were  not  fulfilled.  He  was  well- 
meaning,  and  certainly  did  a  good  deal  for  his  subjects. 
Under  him  BcrHn  became  a  great  centre  for  German  science 
and  learning.  But  he  had  no  strength  of  character,  and 
shared  far  too  much  those  extravagant  notions  of  the 
authority  of  Kings  whic\i  have  always  hitherto  marked  the 
Prussian  royal  family.  his  subjects  urged  him  to  grant 
a  constitutional  system  of  .government,  reminding  him  of 
the  early  promises  of  his  father.  At  last,  in  1847,  when 
entreated  from  all  sides,  he  s^immoncd  to  Berlin  a  United 
Diet,  This  was  not  a  Parliam.ent,  but  a  combination  of 
the  several  Provincial  Diets.  It  was  opened  on  April  11. 
The  King  caused  great  dissatisfaction  by  declaring  that 
nothing  would  induce  him  to  concede  a  constitution,  and 
thus  to  change  the  natural  relation  between  a  prince  and 
his  subjects. 

7.  Religious  movements  in  Prussia.— Various  religious 
movements  took  place  in  the  early  years  of  Frederick 
William's  reign.  A  considerable  number,  roused  at  first  by 
the  protest  of  a  priest  named  Ronge  against  a  piece  of  gross 
superstition  sanctioned  by  Bishop  Arnoldi  of  Trier,  left  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church,  and  formed  communities  to  which 
they  gave  the  name  of  German  Catholic  Communities.  The 
Protestant  Church,  which  had  been  outwardly  strengthened 
under  Frederick  William  III.  by  the  union  of  the  Lutheran 
and  Reformed  Churches  in  1817,  was  also  deeply  moved  by 
the  action  of  a  party  whose  members  called  themselves  the 
Friends  of  Light.  Many  of  these  left  the  Church,  and 
formed  Free  Communities.  Both  these  and  the  German 
Catholic  Communities  became  centres  for  political  agitation. 

8.  Effect  of  the  French  Revolution  of  1848  in  the  smaller 
States.— The  year   1848  is  a  memorable  one  in  German 


XIX.] 


THE  REVOLUTION  OF  1848. 


229 


history.  Dissatisfaction  was  deep  and  widespread.  In  all 
the  leading  States  the  people  were  urgently  demanding 
freer  forms  of  government,  and  the  desire  for  the  unity  ol 
Germany  had  become  in  many  minds  almost  a  passion. 
When  the  third  French  Revolution  broke  out,  its  influence 
was  immediately  felt  in  Germany.  The  popular  movement 
this  time  was  very  different  from  any  the  Governments  had 
hitherto  had  to  contend  with.  The  people  were  evidently 
in  earnest,  and  resolved  to  obtain,  at  whatever  cost,  their 
chief  demands.  The  princes  of  the  smaller  States  were 
alarmed,  and  most  of  them,  without  loss  of  time,  changed 
their  Ministries,  the  new  Ministry  in  each  case  frankly 
adopting  a  liberal  policy.  Lewis,  King  of  Bavaria,  had  to 
resign  his  crown  in  favour  of  his  son  Maximilian;  and 
the  Grand  Duke  of  Hessen  Darmstadt  Jijsociated  his  son 
with  him  in  the  government. 

9.  The  Revolution  in  Austria  and  Prussia.— The  Revolu- 
tion was  most  serious  in  the  two  great  German  States, 
Prussia  and  Austria.  In  Vienna,  a  rising,  headed  by  the 
students,  was  so  successful,  that  on  March  13,  1848,  Prince 
.  Metternich  was  a  fugitive  on  his  way  to  England.  After 
his  departure  the  greatest  confusion  reigned  in  the  capital. 
The  revolutionary  party  everywhere  gained  the  upper  hand ; 
and  the  Emperor  was  obliged  to  summon  a  Diet,  to  be 
elected  by  universal  suffrage  in  all  his  hereditary  lands. 
He  no  longer  felt  safe  in  Vienna,  and  went,  with  the 
Imperial  household,  to  Innsbruck.  In  Berlin  the  Revolu- 
tion was  even  more  violent.  Excited  meetings  were  held  ; 
and  on  March  13  and  the  following  days,  there  were  sharp 
contests  between  the  people  and  the  soldiers.  The  King, 
who  was  not  personally  unpopulir,  hesitated  for  some  time 
as  to  the  couise  he  should  adopt,  but  on  March  17  pro- 
mised to  set  up  constitutional  government  The  people 
were  excited,  and  demanded  that  the  troops  should  be  seni 


230 


RE  VOL  UTIONA  R  Y  MO  VEMENTS.         [chap. 


XIX.] 


WAR  WITH  DENMARK. 


231 


out  of  Berlin.  On  the  i8th  a  crowd  gathered  before  the 
palace  to  press  the  demand.  Two  shots  were  suddenly 
fired,  from  what  quarter  no  one  knew.  A  cry  of  treason 
was  raised,  and  many  took  up  arms.  In  the  afternoon  a 
fierce  struggle  began.  The  troops  were  attacked  from 
behind  barricades,  and  from  the  roofs  and  windows  of 
houses.  The  contest  went  on  till  far  in  the  night,  and 
many  were  killed.  Next  day  the  King  yielded  the  point  in 
dispute.  He  declared  that  he  placed  himself  "  at  the  head 
of  the  movement,"  and  Berlin  was  put  under  the  protection 
of  armed  citizens.  The  Ministry  was  dismissed,  and,  after 
an  electoral  law  had  been  passed  by  the  United  Diet,  orders 
were  issued  for  the  election  of  a  National  Assembly. 

10.    The  Provisional    Parliament   in  Frankfurt.— Mean- 
while, another  great  movement  began  elsewhere.     It  was 
generally  hoped  that  union  as  well  as  freedom  was  now  to 
be  achieved  by  Germany  ;  but,  as  Prussia  and  Austria  were 
in  too  much  disorder  to  do  anything,  about  500  Germans 
from  the  various  States  met  at  Frankfurt,  and  on  MarcJi  21 
constituted  themselves  a  provisional  Parliament.     An  ex- 
treme party  wished  the  Assembly  to  declare   itself  per- 
manent ;  but  to  this  the  majority  would  not  agree.     It  was 
decided  that  a  National  Assembly  should  be  elected  forth- 
with by  the  German  people.     The  Confederate  Diet,  know- 
ing that  the  provisional  Parliament  was  approved  by  the 
nation,  recognized  its  authority.      Through   the   Diet  the 
various  Governments  were  communicated  with,  and  all  of 
them  agreed  to  make  arrangements  for  the  elections.     The 
discontented  party  in  the  provisional  Parliament,  wishing  to 
establish  a  Republic,  called  the  people  to  arms  in  Upper 
Baden ;  but  they  were  put  down  by  the  troops  of  various 
South  German  States. 

II.  The  National  Assembly  in  Frankfurt.— The  National 
Assembly  was  opened  in  Frankfurt  on  May  18,  1848.     ll 


elected  the  Archduke  John  of  Austria  as  the  head  of  a  new 
provisional  central  Government.  The  choice  was  a  happy  one. 
The  Archduke  was  at  once  acknowledged  by  the  different 
Governments,  and  on  July  12  the  President  of  the  Con- 
federate Diet  formally  made  over  to  him  the  authority  which 
had  hitherto  belonged  to  the  Diet.  The  Diet  then  ceased 
to  exist.  The  Archduke  chose  from  the  Assembly  seven 
members,  who  formed  a  responsible  ministry.  The  Assem- 
bly was  divided  into  two  parties,  the  Right  and  the  Left. 
These  again  were  broken  up  into  various  sections.  Much 
time  was  lost  in  useless  discussions,  and  it  was  soon  sus- 
pected that  the  Assembly  would  not  in  tlie  end  prove  equal 
to  the  great  task  it  had  undertaken. 

12.  War  with  Denmark. — While  the  Assembly  was 
sitting,  German  troops  carried  on  a  foreign  war.  The 
Duchy  of  Holstein  was  subject  to  the  Danish  King,  but  it 
had  always  been  a  part  of  Germany,  and  in  virtue  of  it  the 
Danish  King  was  a  member  of  the  Gennan  Confederation. 
Schleswig,  although  a  large  part  of  the  population  was  Ger- 
man, did  not  belong  to  Germany.  The  people  of  Holstein 
and  the  Germans  of  Schleswig,  however,  maintained  that, 
in  virtue  of  a  treaty  of  1460,  the  two  Duchies  could  not 
be  separated,  and  that,  when  the  male  line  of  the  Danish 
royal  family  should  die  out,  the  connexion  of  both  with 
Denmark  would  come  to  an  end.  In  spite  of  this,  Christian 
VIIL^  King  of  Denmark,  made  a  public  declaration  in  1846, 
that  the  Duchy  of  Schleswig  and  the  greater  part  of  Holstein 
must  always  remain  a  part  of  the  Danish  kingdom.  The 
German  ^arty  in  the  two  Duchies  was  alarmed  at  this  step, 
and  the  Holstein  States  appealed  to  the  Confederate  Diet 
The  latter  passed  a  vague  resolution,  protecting  the  rights 
of  the  Duchies  ;  but  the  King  of  Denmark  replied  that  he 
did  not  intend  to  violate  these  rights.  The  matter  remained 
in  this  unsatisfactory  state  till  the  death  01  Christian  VII L 


232 


RE  VOL  UTIONAR  V  MO  VEMENTS,         [chap. 


in  1848.  Frederick  VII.,  his  son,  declared  himself  strongly 
in  favour  of  the  Danish  view  of  the  case.  The  discontent 
of  the  Gel-man  party  increased,  and  a  rising  took  place  at 
the  time  of  the  general  revolutionary  movement  throughout 
Germany.  A  provisional  Government  was  set  up  in  the 
Duchies.  The  King  of  Denmark  sent  troops  to  put  down 
the  rebellion  ;  but  the  Frankfurt  Assembly  sided  with  the 
Duchies,  and  an  army,  under  the  Prussian  General  Wrangel, 
went  to  uphold  their  cause.  The  Danes  were  driven  out  of 
Schleswig,  and  compelled  to  take  refuge  in  their  ships.  On 
the  other  hand,  the  Danish  fleet  blockaded  the  German 
ports,  and  did  much  harm  to  German  trade.  The  nation 
never  so  deeply  regretted  the  want  of  a  navy.  Several 
ships  were  bought  in  England  and  America ;  but  it  was 
soon  felt  that  the  war  must  be  carried  on  under  great  dis- 
advantages, and  on  August  27  an  armistice  for  seven  months 
was  concluded  at  Malm'd.  As  one  of  the  terms  of  the 
armistice  was  that  a  temporary  Government,  made  up  of  two 
Prussian  and  two  Danish  representatives,  should  take  the 
place  of  the  provisonal  Government  set  up  by  the  Duchies, 
the  National  Assembly,  which  had  authorized  Prussia  to 
open  negotiations  with  Denmark,  at  first  refused  to  approve 
what  had  been  done.  Great  excitement  followed.  The 
Ministry,  which  approved  the  armistice,  resigned.  As  no 
other  could  be  formed,  and  as  all  felt  that  without  Prussia 
the  war  could  not  go  on,  the  majority  of  the  Assembly  at 
last,  on  September  16,  agreed  to  ratify  the  armistice.  The 
minority,  consisting  of  the  extreme  Republicans,  disapproved 
of  this  step,  and  urged  the  people  to  rise  agdinst  an 
Assembly  which  had  betrayed  the  German  cause.  On  the 
1 8th  barricades  were  raised  in  the  streets  of  Frankfurt. 
The  troops  soon  dispersed  the  rioters,  but  not  till  the  mob 
had  been  guilty  of  a  base  deed.  Two  Prussian  deputies, 
belonging  to  the  Right,  were  recognized  as  tliey  returned 


XIX.]     THE  PRUSSIAN  NA  TIONAL  ASSEMBL  Y.       23.1 


from  a  ride.  Both  were  seized  and  murdered.  From  this 
time  the  various  parties  of  the  Assembly  were  greatly  em- 
bittered, and  the  time  which  should  have  been  spent  in 
useful  legislation  was  frittered  away  in  paltry  quarrels.  A 
Revolution  which  was  again  attempted  in  Upper  Baden  had 
to  be  put  down  by  force. 

13.    The  Prussian  National   Assembly.— The  Assembly 
which  had  been  summoned  to  meet  in  Berlin  was  opened  in 
that  city  on  May  22,   1848.      The  Radical  party  resisted 
almost  all  proposals  of  the  Government,  and  in  this  they 
were  supported  by  large  classes  of  the  people,  who  tried  to 
frighten  the  moderate  members  into  submission  by  threats. 
At  length,  on  November  9,  the  King  adjourned  the  Assembly 
till  the  27th,  when  it  was  told  to  meet  in  the  town  of  Bran- 
denburg,  where  it  might  carry  on  its  deliberations  in  peace. 
The  members  of  the  Right  and  Centre  obeyed  ;  but  the  Left 
protested,  and  continued  its  sittings  in  Berlin.      It  even 
passed  a  resolution  that  Government  had  no  right  to  levy- 
taxes  so  long  as  the  Assembly  did  not  fulfil  its  functions  in 
the  capital      It  was   soon   discovered  that  the  Assembly 
could  no  more  do  anything  in  Brandenburg  than  in  Berlin  ; 
and  after  a  few  sittings  it  was  broken  up.     A  new  Parlia- 
ment was  summoned  to  meet  on  Febi-uary  26,  1849,  to  con- 
sider a  constitution,  the  draft  of  which  the  King  caused  to 
be  published  on  December  5,  1848. 

14.  The  Austrian  Diet.  The  Revolution  in  Hungary  and 
in  Vienna.  Abdication  of  the  Emperor  Ferdinand.  Francis 
Joseph.— -The  Austrian  Empire  was  in  a  state  of  great  con- 
fusion. The  Diet  was  opened  on  July  22  in  Vienna,  but  it 
was  almost  powerless.  The  members,  representing  many 
different  nationalities,  had  no  common  aim  ;  it  was  with 
difficulty  they  could  even  understand  each  other.  The 
Emperor  came  back  from  Innsbruck  to  Vienna  on  August 
12  ;  but  he  had  little  influence.     Of  all  the  dangers  wb\cb 


234 


RE  VOL  UTIONAR  Y  MO  VEMENTS, 


[chap. 


XIX.] 


AUSTRIA  AND  GERMANY, 


23S 


threatened  the  Empire,  the  Hungarian  difficulty  was  the 
greatest  Headed  by  the  well-known  orator  Kossuth, 
Hungary  demanded  complete  independence.  The  Slavonic 
population  joined  the  Imperial  Government  in  resisting  this 
demand,  and  Jellachich,  Ban  of  Croatia,  with  his  wild 
hordes,  tried  to  quell  the  Revolution.  The  Hungarians 
devoted  themselves  with  much  enthusiasm  to  the  national 
cause.  Unfortunately  Count  Lamberg,  the  Imperial  com- 
missary in  Pesth,  was  murdered.  The  Emperor  could 
not  forgive  this  outrage,  and  on  October  6  caused  orders 
to  be  issued  for  the  instant  march  of  a  part  of  the 
Vienna  garrison  against  the  Magyars.  A  number  of  the 
soldiers,  sympathizing  with  the  Revolutionary  party,  refused 
to  move ;  and  they  were  supported  by  many  citizens  and 
students.  A  violent  contest  took  place,  in  which  the  loyal 
troops  were  beaten.  A  number  of  people  rushed  into  the 
war  office,  seized  Latour,  the  Minister  who  had  directed  the 
troops  to  proceed  against  Hungary,  and  murdered  him. 
The  Emperor  once  more  left  the  capital,  and  went  to  Olmiitz 
The  Diet  continued  to  sit;  but  it  could  do  nothing.  Vienna 
was  in  the  hands  of  the  Revolutionists,  who  proceeded  with 
much  activity  to  prepare  against  attack.  Troops  came  to 
ihe  help  of  the  Emperor  from  all  quarters,  and  on  October 
2 1  the  city  was  surrounded.  It  was  not  taken  till  the  30th, 
and  then  after  a  great  deal  -of  bloodshed.  When  at  last 
Vienna  was  held  by  the  Imperialists,  they  disarmed  the 
people,  and  shot  those  leaders  of  the  Revolution  who  did 
not  escape  by  flight  The  Diet  had  already  been  adjourned, 
and  summoned  to  meet  in  Kremsier  on  November  22.  The 
Emperor  Ferdinand,  who  was  very  delicate,  feeling  that 
in  so  stormy  a  time  the  duties  of  government  ought  to  be 
undertaken  by  younger  hands,  abdicated  on  December  i, 
1848,  in  favour  of  his  nephew,  Francis  Joseph.  The  new 
Empsror  was  eighteen  years  of  age. 


1 5.  The  relation  of  Austria  to  Germany.  T*he  Imperial 
title  offered  to  the  King  of  Prussia,  and  refused. — A  great 
deal  of  time  was  taken  up  in  the  Frankfurt  Assembly  with 
the  discussion  of  the  German  land  laws.  When  at  last  the 
constitution  of  the  Confederation  began  to  be  seriously  con- 
sidered, it  was  felt  that  the  Assembly  was  in  a  much  less 
favourable  position  than  at  first,  for  the  Governments  had 
got  over  their  chief  difficulties,  and  were  not  inclined  to 
adopt  any  very  thorough  changes.  The  chief  question  that 
arose  was  as  to  the  future  relation  of  Austria  to  Germany. 
Every  one  wished  Austria  proper  to  form  part  of  Ger- 
many ;  but  the  Austrian  Government  insisted  that  the 
Empire  as  a  whole  should  be  admitted  into  the  Con- 
federation. A  powerful  party,  therefore,  headed  by  Baron 
von  Gagern^  president  of  the  Assembly,  urged  that  Austria 
should  be  altogether  shut  out  from  Germany.  This  was 
opposed  not  only  by  Austria  and  the  Roman  Catholic  States 
which  looked  to  Vienna  for  guidance,  but  by  the  so-called 
Great  German  party,  and  by  the  Democrats,  who  did  not 
wish  Prussia  to  become  the  leading  German  State.  Von 
Gagem  tried  to  win  over  the  latter  party  by  agreeing  to 
universal  suffrage  and  other  democratic  elements  in  the  new 
constitution.  At  last,  in  March,  1849,  the  Austrian  Govern- 
ment formally  demanded  that  the  Empire  should  form  part 
of  the  Confederation.  It  also  proposed  that  a  Directory 
should  be  appointed,  made  up  of  seven  persons,  the  Austrian 
representative  to  be  permanent  president ;  and  that  the 
Parliament  elected  by  the  people  should  be  replaced  by  a 
States  Assembly.  Many  who  had  before  hesitated  now 
joined  Von  Gagern's  party.  On  March  27  a  majority  de- 
cided that  a  President  should  be  appointed,  in  whose  family 
the  honour  should  be  hereditary,  and  that  he  should  have 
the  title  of  "  Emperor  of  the  Germans."  Next  day  it  was 
resolved  to  offer  the  Imperial  title  to  the  King  of  Prussia. 


\ 


\. 


X 


\ 


236 


REVOLUTIONARY  MOVEMENTS.         [chap. 


XIX.] 


THE  HUNGARIAN  REVOLUTION 


231 


\\ 


%% 


On  April  3,  a  deputation  waited  on  Frederick  William  to 
communicate  to  him  the  will  of  the  Assembly.  His  reply 
was  anxiously  awaited  throughout  Germany.  He  answered 
that  he  could  not  accept  the  title  offered  to  him  without  the 
consent  of  the  German  princes,  and  that  the  constitution 
would  not  give  him  sufficient  power  to  fulfil  the  duties  of  an 
Emperor. 

16.  End  of  the  National  Assembly. — Notwithstanding 
the  disappointment  caused  by  the  refusal  of  the  King  of 
Prussia  to  become  Emperor,  the  Assembly  tried  to  induce 
the  German  States  to  accept  the  new  constitution.  Some 
Governments  did  so  ;  but  the  more  important  States  either 
hesitated  or  withheld  their  consent.  Austria  had  already 
recalled  her  representatives  from  the  Assembly.  Her  ex- 
ample was  soon  followed  by  Prussia,  Hanover,  and  other 
States  ;  and  on  May  20  many  of  the  most  distinguished 
members  voluntarily  resigned  their  seats.  On  May  30  the 
Assembly  changed  the  place  of  meeting  to  Stuttgart  But 
it  had  now  become  contemptible;  and  on  June  18  it  was 
dispersed  by  the  Wiirtemberg  Government.  Thus  ended 
an  Assembly,  the  opening  of  which  had  seemed  to  patriotic 
Germans  like  the  dawning  of  a  new  day  for  their  country. 

17.  Disturbances  in  Saxony,  Rhenish  Bavaria,  and 
Baden. — Meanwhile  there  had  been  disturbances  in  various 
parts  of  Germany.  The  Saxon  Diet,  in  which  the  demo- 
cratic party  was  strong,  had  demanded  that  the  Government 
should  accept  the  Frankfurt  constitution.  Instead  of  doing 
so,  the  Government  dissolved  the  Diet  on  May  3.  This 
gave  rise  to  so  fierce  a  struggle  between  the  citizens  of 
Dresden  and  the  troops  that  the  King  and  his  Ministers  had 
to  take  refuge  in  the  fortress  of  Konigstein.  The  people 
made  themselves  masters  of  a  large  part  of  Dresden  ;  and 
even  when  the  Prussians  came  to  the  help  of  the  Saxon 
troops  order  was  not  restored  for  several  days.     There  were 


still  more  violent  insurrections  in   Rhenish   Bavaria  and 
Baden.      Provisional   Governments  were  formed  in  both 
these   countries  ;    and,  like  their  brother  of  Saxony,  the 
King  of  Bavaria  and  the  Grand  Duke  of  Baden  had  to 
appeal  to  Prussia  for  help.     The  Prussians  soon  subdued 
Rhenish  Bavaria ;  but  in  Baden  they  had  more  difficulty. 
as  the  troops  of  that  country  almost  all  joined  the  Revolu- 
tionists.    Several  engagements  took  place,  in  each  of  which 
the  Prussians  were  victorious.     By  the  fall  of  Rastatt,  on 
July  23,  the  struggle  was  brought  to  an  end,  and  the  Grand 
Duke,  who  had  been  obliged  to  fly,  was  able  to  return  to 
Carlsruhe.     The  Prussians,  however,  did  not  return  home 

for  some  time. 

18.    The  Revolution  in  Hungary.— Before  the  close  ot 
1848,  the  Government  of  the  ILmpcror  Francis  Joseph  had 
restored  all  the  German  provinces  of  Austria  to  order  ;  and 
in  the  spring  of  1849  the  Italian  provinces   also  had   to 
submit.     The  rising  in  Hungary  was  more  serious.    The 
Austrian  troops  under  Prince  IVindischgraiz  were  defeated 
in  a  series  of  battles,  and   driven  back  with  great  loss. 
Buda-Pesth  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  insurgents.     Many 
Germans  and  Poles  joined  the  Hungarians,  whose  army 
rose  to  the  number   of  about  200,000  men.     The  most 
prominent  generals  were  Gors^ey,  and  the  Poles  Bern  and 
Dcmbinsky.     The  Diet,  believing  the  country  to  be  now 
perfectly  secure,  met  in  Debrcczin,  and  formally  declared 
Hungary  independent  of  Austria.    A  provisional  Govern- 
ment, with  Kossuth  at  its  head,  was  formed.      The  Imperial 
Government,  unable  to  crush  the  Revolution,  appealed  to 
Russia  for  help.     Russia,  afraid  that  the  rebellious  spirit 
might   spread   into  her  own  provinces,  had  already  con- 
centrated  troops   on   her  frontiers,   and  gladly   agreed  to 
help  Austria.     Towards  the  end  of  May,  a  Russian  army 
entered  Hungary.     At  the  same  time  the  Austrian  army, 


238 


RE  VOL  UTIONAR  Y  MO  VEMENTS, 


[chap. 


which  had  been  gieatly  stren^hcned,  invaded  the  country 
from  the  east,  while  a  force,  under  Jellachich,  attacked  the 
Hungarians  in  the  south.  The  Hungarians  still  fought 
bravely ;  but  they  could  not  long  hold  out  against  such 
overwhelming  numbers.  Buda-Pesth  was  reconquered  by 
the  Austrians,  and  the  Diet  was  driven  even  from  Szegedin^ 
where  it  had  taken  refuge.  On  August  1 1,  a  council  which 
Kossuth  had  summoned  at  Arad  appointed  Gorgey  dictator 
with  unlimited  power.  Two  days  afterwards  he  surrendered 
with  his  army  to  the  Russian  general  Rodiger.  This  stqp 
was  quite  unexpected  ;  and  Gorgey  \ras  everywhere  accused 
of  treachery.  His  surrender  brought  the  war  to  a  close. 
The  leaders  of  the  Revolution  fled  across  the  Turkish 
frontier  ;  and  most  of  the  fortresses  which  had  not  yet  been 
taken  at  once  capitulated.  The  civil  population  had 
suffered  fearfully  during  the  war  ;  but  what  was  hardest  to 
bear  was  the  crushing  of  those  hopes  which  all  had 
cherished,  and  which  had  seemed  so  nearly  accomplished. 

19.  Constitutional  government  set  up  in  Prussia. — The 
Prussian  Parliament,  which  liad  been  summoned  to  meet 
on  February  26,  1849,  was  opened  on  that  date.  It  con- 
sisted of  two  Chambers.  No  underst;  n  ling  with  the 
Government  could  be  arrived  at,  so  that  on  April  27  a 
dissolution  again  took  place.  A  Parliament  chosen  accord- 
ing to  a  new  electoral  law  met  on  August  7  ;  and  this  time 
the  deliberations  were  more  successful.  Concessions  were 
made  on  both  sides,  and  on  February  6,  1850,  the  King 
took  an  oath  to  maintain  the  new  constitution.  From  that 
time  Prussia  must  be  regarded  as,  at  least  nominally,  a 
constitutional  State. 

20.  The  German  Union.  The  Erfurt  Parliament. 
Austria  tries  to  reconstitute  the  Confederation.  —  Mean- 
while the  King  of  Prussia  had  been  trying  to  unite 
Germany  on  a  new  basis.    At  his  invitation  the  representa- 


X1X.J 


THE  GERMAN  UNION, 


239 


tives  of  a  number  of  States  met  in  Berlin  in  May,  1849. 
Austria  was  at  this  time  in  the  very  heat  of  her  great 
struggle  with  Hungar>\     Prussia  seized  the  opportunity  to 
propose  that  a  Confederation  of  German  States  should  be 
formed  under  her  leadership,  without  Austria.     On  May  26, 
an  alliance  was  concluded  between  Prussia,  Hanover,  and 
Saxony.     This  was  afterwards  called  "  The  Alliance  of  the 
Three   Kings."      The  new   Confederation   was  joined  by 
several  of  the  smaller  North  German  States.     As  the  Con- 
federation  did   not  embrace  all    Germany,  it  was   called 
"the  German  Union."     A  Parliament  of  the  Union  was 
summoned  to  meet  in  Erfurt^  on  April  20,  1850.     Hanover 
and  Saxony,  not  approving  of  this  step,  refused  to   send 
representatives  ;  and  the  former  State  withdrew  altogether 
from  the  alliance.      Whilst   the   Erfurt  Parliament  sat,  a 
Congress  of  the  princes  of  the  Union  was  opened  in  Berlin, 
on  May  10.     Austria  had  by  this  time  begun  to  recover 
from    the   shock    caused   by  the    Hungarian    Revolution. 
Alarmed  by  the  attempt  of  Prussia  to  seize  the  place  in 
Germany  which  she  looked  on  as  lawfully  hers,  and  resolved 
to  overturn  the  so-called  Union,  she  had  already,  in  con- 
junction  with    Bavaria   and    Wiirtemberg,   called    on    all 
German    States   to  send    representatives  to   Frankfurt  in 
order  to  reconstitute  the   Confederation.      The  summons 
was  favourably  responded  to  by  Hanover,  Saxony,  the  two 
Hessens,  and  various  other  minor  States.     On  the  very  day 
on  which  the  Congress  of  princes  who  accepted  the  leader- 
ship of  Prussia  met  in  Berlin,  the  representatives  of  Austria 
and   of  the  States  which  grouped  themselves  around  her 
assembled  in  Frankfurt.     Germany  was  thus  openly  divided 
into  two  hostile  factions. 

21.  Civil  War  threatened.— The  prevailing  bitterness 
of  feeling  was  greatly  increased  by  a  miserable  quarrel, 
which  as  nearly  as  possible  plunged   the  country  into  a 


# 

/ 


240 


RE  VOL  UTIONAR  Y  MO  FEME  NTS,         [chap. 


XIX.) 


WAR  WITH  DENMARK^. 


241 


civil  war.  The  Elector  of  Hessen  Cassel^  with  the  help 
of  his  very  unpopular  minister  Hasscnpjlug^  tried  to 
obtain  supplies  without  giving  the  Chambers  time  to 
deliberate  on  the  budget.  When  the  Chambers  protested, 
they  were  dissolved  on  September  2  ;  and  an  order  was 
issued  for  the  levying  of  all  taxes  as  usual.  This  caused  so 
great  a  commotion  that  the  Elector  was  obliged  to  leave 
Cassel.  The  Frankfurt  Diet,  to  which  he  appealed,  sided 
with  him  ;  and  on  November  i  Austrian  and  Bavarian 
troops  entered  his  territory  in  order  to  enforce  the  Diet's 
decision.  Prussia  was  prepared  for  this  step ;  and  on 
November  2  the  towns  of  Cassel  and  Fulda  were  held  by 
her  army.  There  was  a  powerful  peace  party  in  Berlin  ; 
and  its  counsels  so  far  prevailed  that  General  Radowilz^  the 
Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  had  to  resign  his  portfolio  in 
favour  of  Von  Manteuffel.  But  when  Austria  demanded 
that  the  Prussian  troops  should  be  withdrawn  from 
Hessen-Cassel,  the  Prussian  Government  prepared  for  war. 
The  question  whether  Prussia  or  Austria  was  to  occupy  the 
first  place  in  Germany  had  been  steadily  becoming  the 
leading  question  in  German  politics  ;  it  appeared  as  if  the 
moment  had  now  come  for  its  decision.  But  as  all  saw  the 
frightful  evils  which  a  civil  war  caused  by  such  a  question 
would  bring  upon  the  country,  a  last  attempt  was  made  to 
settle  the  present  difficulty  ;  and  it  was  successful.  Prince 
Schwartsenberg^  the  Austrian  Minister,  and  Von  Man- 
teuffel^ the  Prussian  representative,  met  at  Obniitz  on 
November  28.  They  agreed  that  "free  conferences"  of  all 
German  princes  should  be  held  forthwith  in  order  to  arrange 
the  constitution  of  Germany  ;  and  that  Pnissia  and  Austria 
should  together  settle  the  affairs  of  Hessen-Cassel  and 
those  of  Schleswig-Holstein. 

22.    The  Frankfurt  Diet  restored.— The  so-called  "free 
conferences"  were  opened  in  Dresden  on   December   23, 


They  led  to  nothing.  But  Prussia  herself  began  to  feel  that, 
however  unsatisfactory  it  might  be  in  some  respects,  the 
constitution  of  181 5  would  be  better  than  the  present  con- 
fusion. She  therefore  formally  recognized  the  Diet  which 
Austria  had  assembled  at  Frankfurt,  and  her  example  was 
followed  by  the  other  members  of  the  Union.  From  June 
12,  1851.  the  Diet  continued  to  sit  as  it  had  done  before 
1848.  So  far  as  appearances  went,  the  Revolution  had 
effected  no  change  in  the  affairs  of  Germany.  But  this  was 
not  really  the  case.  It  had  brought  into  prominence  the 
great  question  as  to  the  relative  position  of  Austria  and 
Prussia  in  Germany  ;  and  it  made  obvious  to  those  who 
could  look  beneath  the  surface  in  favour  of  which  side  that 
question  must  in  the  end  be  settled. 

23.  The  War  with  Denmark. — On  the  expir)^  of  the 
armistice  of  Malmo  in  March,  1849,  the  war  with  Denmark 
had  begim  again.  The  Germans  were  at  first  successful. 
Two  Danish  ships  of  war,  the  "Christian  VIII."  and  the 
"Gefion,"  being  unable  to  leave  the  harbour  of  Eckerjifjorde, 
were  so  vigorously  fired  upon  from  the  shore  that  the  former 
was  blown  up  and  the  latter  surrendered.  The  Diippel 
entrenchments  were  stormed  by  the  Bavarians  and  Saxons  ; 
and  the  Schleswig-Holstein  corps,  under  the  Prussian 
General  Bonin,  took  Kolding^  and  pushed  on  to  the 
fortress  of  Fridericia.  Here,  on  July  5  and  6,  the  troops  of 
Schleswig-Holstein  suffered  a  decided  defeat  On  July  10 
an  armistice  was  signed,  in  which  Schleswig  was  provision- 
ally separated  from  Holstein.  An  understanding  could  not 
be  anived  at ;  but,  as  Denmark  was  supported  by  the  Great 
Powers,  the  circumstances  of  Germany  made  it  impossible 
for  her  to  carry  on  the  war.  On  July  2,  1850,  Prussia  con- 
cluded peace ;  and  the  other  German  Governments  were 
obliged  to  acquiesce.  The  people  of  Schleswig-Holstein 
refused    to    submit    to    the    demands    of   Denmark,  and 


342 


RE  VOL  UTIONAR  Y  MO  VEMENTS,    [CH.  xix.J 


continued  the  war  ;  but  on  July  25  their  army  was  com- 
pletely routed  by  the  Danes  at  Idstedt,  and  compelled  to 
return  to  the  frontiers  of  Holstein.  By  the  interference  of 
Austrian  troops,  Prussia  consenting,  in  1851,  peace  was 
restored,  the  government  of  Schleswig-Holstein  bemg 
resumed  bv  the  King  of  Denmark.  By  a  protocol  signed 
in  London  in  1852  by  the  Great  Powers,  the  King  of 
Denmark  was  guaranteed  in  his  possession  of  the  Duchies  ; 
and  the  succession  for  them  as  well  as  for  the  Danish 
kingdom  was  settled  on  the  Gliicksburg  line.  But  neither 
the  States  of  the  Duchies  nor  the  Diet  accepted  the  London 
protocol,  so  that  the  settlement  remained  incomplete. 

24.  Treaty  of  commerce  between  Prussia  and  Austria.— 
In  1851  it  appeared  as  if  the  Customs  Union  were  about  to 
fall  to  pieces,  in  which  case  the  Southern  States  would  have 
united  themselves  in  commercial  matters  to  Austria,  and 
the  Northern  for  the  most  part  to  Prussia,  This  difficulty 
was  got  over  by  a  treaty  of  commerce  concluded  between 
Prussia  and  Austria  on  February  18,  18^ 


CHAPTER  XX. 


RECENT  EVENTS. 


The  war  of  Austria  with  Sardinia  and  France;  the  partial  union 
of  Italy  makes  Germans  desire  the  unity  of  Gern:any  (i) — death 
of  Frederick  William  IV.  of  Prussia  ;    William  I.  ;  dispute  of 
the  Prussian  Government  with  the  House  of  Represottatives  as  to 
the  army ;    Von  Bismarck  made  Prime  Minister  (2) — unsatis^ 
factory  relations  of  Austria   and   Prussia    {^l)— disputes  with 
respect  to  Schleswig-Holstein  (4) — Prussia  and  Austria  make  war 
on  Denmark  ;  Denmark  gives  up  the  Duchies  (5) — the  Duchies 
give  rise  to  misunderstandings  between  Prussia  and  Austria  ;  the 
Convention  of  Gastein  {6)— further  disputes  between  Prussia  and 
Austria  ;  tJie  two  Powers  prepare  for  war  ;  Prussia  concludes  an 
alliance  with  Italy  (7) — Count  Bismarck  proposes  to  reconstitute 
the   Confederation    (8) — the  Prussian  p)eople  opposed  to  war ; 
attempt  of  the  neutral  Po^vers  to  maintain  peace  (9) — outbreak 
of  war  (10) — real  causes  of  the  war ;  advantages  of  Prussia  (11) 
— the  Prussians  overrun  Hessen-Cassely  Saxony,  and  Hanover 
(12) — the  Prussians  cross  the  Bohemian  frontier  {13) — battle  of 
Kdniggrdtz{\^) — Prussian  successes  {\^) — the  Peace  of  Prague ; 
Austria  shut  out  from  Germany  ;  secret  alliatue  bettveen  Prussia 
and  the  South   German  States  (16) — annexations  to  Prussian 
territory;  King  William  and  Parliament  reconciled  (ll)— for- 
mation of  the  North  Geivian  Confederation  (18) — France  shows 
jealousy  of  Prussia;    attempts  to   buy    Luxemburg ;    Prussia 
protests;  war  prevented  by  a  Conference  (19) — constitution  of  the 
Confederation ;   tht    Customs  Parliavient ,    obstacles  to  the  full 
union  of  Germany  (20) — Leopold,  prince  of  Hohenzollern,  becomes 


244 


RECENT  EVENTS. 


[chap. 


a  candidate  for  the  Spanish  crown;  opposition  of  Fyance;  de- 
claration of  war  against  Germany  {2i)—tAe  South  German 
States  remain  true  to  Prussia  ;  real  causes  of  the  war  {12)— first 
victories  of  the  Germans  {2-^)— Further  victories  ;  battle  of  Sedan  ; 
surrender  of  Napoleon  {24^)— siege  of  Pans  {2^)— surrender  of 
Strassburg  and  Metz  ;  further  French  disasters  (26)— The  North 
German  Confederation  becomes  a  German  Confederation ;  King 
William  of  Prussia  is  made  Emperor  in  Germany  {2^)—Pcacl 
of  Frankfurt  {2%)— feeling  of  the  Germans  as  to  the  war  {29)— 
constitution  of  the  Empire  {30)— variety  of  national  life  in  Ger- 
many {2tl)— scientific  and  literary  writers  in  Germany  (32)— 
German  artists  (33). 

I.  The  Italian  War  of  1856.  Effect  of  the  partial  union 
of  Italy  upon  Germany.— The  years  which  followed  the 
revolutionary  period  begun  in  1848  were  on  the  whole 
prosperous.  Commerce  flourished,  and  much  was  done 
to  promote  popular  education.  In  1859  a  war  broke  out 
between  Attstria  on  the  one  hand,  and  Sardinia  and  France 
on  the  other.  Austria  tried  to  drag  the  Confederation  into 
the  struggle ;  and  many  of  the  smaller  States  would  willingly 
have  supported  her.  But  Prussia,  though  she  mobilized 
parts  of  her  army,  adhered  to  the  principle  that  the  Con- 
federation had  no  right  to  enter  upon  any  war  which  did 
not  directly  bear  upon  German  interests.  By  this  war 
Austria  lost  Lombardy.  The  partial  union  of  Italy  under 
Victor  Emmatiuel  gave  a  fresh  impulse  in  many  German 
minds  to  the  desire  for  unity.  Those  who  wished  the 
different  States  to  be  joined  more  closely  were  still  divided 
into  two  parties.  The  National  Union  thought  Prussia 
should  be  placed  at  the  head  of  the  Fatherland,  the 
Austrian  Empire  being  altogether  shut  out  from  Germany. 
The  Great  German  party  insisted  that  no  arrangement 
could  be  satisfactory  which  did  not  include  among  the  Con- 
federate States  Austria  and  the  sister  Duchies. 


XX.] 


OTTO  VON  BISMARCK. 


245 


2.  King  William  I.  of  Prussia.  Otto  von  Bismarck- 
Schonhausen. — King  Frederick  William  IV.  of  Prussia  died 
on  January  2,  1861.  He  was  succeeded  by  his  brother, 
Frederick  William  Lewis^  who  had  already,  since  October 
8,  1858,  during  the  continued  illness  of  the  King,  acted  as 
Prince  Regent.  The  new  King  ascended  the  throne  as 
William  I.  He  was  crowned  at  Konigsberg  on  October 
18,  1 861,  with  great  pomp.  He  was  an  enthusiastic  soldier, 
and  had  long  wished  to  see  the  Prussian  army  reorganized. 
His  efforts  to  achieve  this  end  led  to  disputes  between 
the  Government  and  the  Representative  Assembly.  The 
latter  refused  to  sanction  the  expenditure  necessary  for 
the  required  additions  to  the  standing  army,  and  even  de- 
manded that  the  time  for  the  military  training  of  the  male 
population  should  be  reduced  from  three  to  two  years.  The 
deputies  accurately  represented  the  wish  of  the  nation,  as 
was  proved  by  the  result  of  two  general  elections  in  1862 
and  1863.  On  October  8,  1862,  the  King  appointed  Otto 
von  Bismarck'Sch'6nhausc7i  prime  minister  and  minister  of 
foreign  affairs.  Bismarck  first  appeared  in  public  life  as  a 
member  of  the  Prussian  United  Diet  in  1847.  In  1851  he 
was  made  Prussian  representative  at  the  Frankfurt  Diet 
There  he  carefully  studied  the  Austrian  policy,  and  main- 
tained firmly  the  rights  of  his  country  in  the  direction  of 
German  affairs.  He  was  afterwards  Prussian  ambassador 
at  the  courts  of  St  Petersburg  and  Paris.  In  his  new 
position  Bismarck  displayed  great  energy  of  character,  with 
tendencies  as  despotic  as  possible,  and  an  utter  indifference 
to  public  opinion.  With  his  aid,  and  in  direct  violation  of 
the  constitution,  the  Knig  carried  out  his  scheme  of  army 
reform. 

3.  Relations  of  Austria  and  Prussia. — Meanwhile  the 
relations  of  Prussia  to  Austria  and  the  German  Con- 
federation were  not  satisfactory.    Bismarck  openly  declared 


246 


RECENT  EVENTS. 


[chap. 


in  the  Prussian  Parliament  that  the  German  problem  could 
be  solved  only  by  "  blood  and  iron."  In  August,  1863,  the 
Emperor  Francis  Joseph  surprised  Germany  by  summoning 
a  Congress  of  princes  to  Frankfurt,  with  the  view  of  forming 
a  new  German  constitution.  The  scheme  failed,  on  account 
of  the  refusal  of  Prussia  to  have  anything  to  do  with  it. 
Prussia  herself  proposed  that  a  Representative  Assembly 
should  work  side  by  side  with  the  Frankfurt  Diet ;  but 
Austria  would  not  listen  to  this  suggestion. 

4.  The  Schleswig-Holstein  question. — The  jealousies  of 
the  two  rival  States  boded  no  good  to  Germany  ;  but  for  a 
time  they  were  forgotten  in  a  question  of  absorbing  interest 
to  the  whole  countr>'.  On  March  30,  1863,  Frederick  VI L 
of  Denmark  raised  anew  the  old  subject  of  dispute,  by 
issuing  a  decree  that  Schleswig  should  be  separated  from 
Holstein  and  Lauenburg,  and  fully  incorporated  with  Den- 
mark. This  was  contrary  to  the  fundamental  law  of  the 
Duchies  of  1460,  and  excited  deep  indignation  through- 
out Germany.  On  October  i  the  Confederate  Diet  re- 
solved on  federal  execution  against  the  King  of  Denmark  ; 
but,  before  it  could  be  carried  out,  he  unexpectedly  died  on 
November  16,  1863.  His  successor,  Christian  IX.,  con- 
firmed the  decree  of  March  30.  On  the  other  hand,  with 
che  death  of  Frederick  VII.  the  male  line  of  the  Danish 
royal  family  had  died  out  ;  and  it  was  maintained  in  Ger- 
many that  Christian  IX.  had  no  right  whatever  to  the 
Duchies  of  Holstein  and  Lauenburg.  It  was  further  main- 
tained that  these  Duchies  were  inseparable  from  Schleswig 
and  that  all  three,  therefore,  must  now  pass  to  the  nearest 
heir.  The  nearest  heir  was  the  Duke  of  Au^ts/cnbur^  ; 
but  in  1852  he  had  formally  resigned  his  right  to  the 
Duchies.  His  son  Frederick,  however,  had  in  1859  pro- 
tested against  this  step  ;  and  he  now,  with  the  assent  of  the 
Duke,  come    forward   And   asserted  his   claims.      Othei 


XX.] 


WAR  WITH  DENMARK, 


247 


German  princes  put  forth  claims  to  the  Duchy  of  Lauen- 

burg. 

5.  Prussia  aud  Austria  make  war  on  Denmark.     Den- 
mark gives  up  the  Duchies.— The  Confederate  Diet  had  not 
signed  the  London  protocol,  and  was  therefore  at  liberty  to 
declare  the  Duchies  vacant.     On   December  8,   1863,  it 
resolved  that  they  should  be  occupied  by  Confederate  troops 
till  the  question  of  inheritance  should  be  settled.     Shortly 
afterwards  an  army  of  12,000  men,  consisting  of  Saxons  and 
Hanoverians,   entered  Holstein.     Meanwhile  Austria  and 
Prussia  were  unable  to  agree  with  the  Diet  as  to  the  policy 
which  ought  to  be  pursued  towards   Schleswig,  and  an- 
nounced their  intention  to  carry  on  the  war  with  Denmark 
as  independent  Powers,  altogether  apart  from  the  Con- 
federation    This  decision  met  with  great  opposition  from 
the  German  people.     Both   in   Prussia  and  Austria  the 
Chambers  refused  to  grant  supplies  for  the  pui-pose   of 
carr>-ing  on  a  war  which  was  the  affair  of  the  Confederation 
alone      Nevertheless  the  two   Governments  persisted  m 
their  determination.     The  Austrian  army  was  placed  under 
General  von  Gablenz;  that  of  Prussia  was  commanded  by 
Prince  Frederick  Charles,  King  William's  nephew  ;  while 
over  both,   as   commander-in-chief,   was    the    aged   Field 
Marshal    Wrangel      On    February    i,    1864,    the    united 
armies   crossed   the   Eider,  and   attacked  the  Danewirk 
which  the  Danes  deserted,  on  the  morning  of  February  6, 
fallin-  back  behind  the    strong    DUppd   entrenchments. 
After\  siege  which  lasted  three  week,  these  were  at  last 
stormed  with  great  bravery  by  the  Prussian  troops  on  April 
18     The  fortress  of  Fridcricia,  which  was  besieged  by  the 
Austrians,  was  soon  afterwards  unexpectedly  deserted  by 
the  Danes.     An  armistice  till  June  26  was  then  concluded  ; 
and  attempts  were  made,  at  a  Conference  held  in  London, 
to  bring  about  peace.     But  the  Danes  refused  to  concede 


24S 


RECENT  EVENTS. 


[c:hap. 


anything,  and  on  the  expiry  of  the  armistice  the  war  was 
resumed.  It  was  obvious,  however,  that  Denmark,  unsup- 
ported by  any  of  the  Great  Powers,  could  not  long  continue 
a  war  against  Austria  and  Prussia.  Discouraged  by  several 
fresh  reverses,  she  made  proposals  for  peace ;  and,  on 
October  30,  1864,  a  treaty  was  signed,  by  which  the  King  of 
Denmark  resigned  all  his  rights  in  the  Duchies  of  Schles- 
wig,  Holstein,  and  Lauenburg,  in  favour  of  the  Emperor  of 
Austria  and  the  King  of  Prussia. 

6.  Disputes  between  Austria  and  Prussia.     The  Conven- 
tion of  Gastein. — The  two  Powers  compelled  the  troops  of 
the  Confederation  to  withdraw  from  Holstein,  and  placed 
the  Duchies  in  the  meantime  under  civil   commissioners 
appointed  by  both   Governments.      It  soon  became  plain 
that  their  interests  with  respect  to  the   Duchies  violently 
conflicted.     Prussia,  guided  by  Bismarck,  evidently  wished 
in  the  end  to  annex  the   Duchies   to  her  own   territory. 
Austria  desired  no  increase  of  territory  from  the  Duchies  ; 
but  she  was  resolved  that  Prussia  should  obtain  none,  and 
favoured  the  claims  of  the  Prince  of  Augustenburg,  whose 
pretensions  were  of  course  decidedly  opposed  by  Prussia. 
The  dispute  between  the  two  Powers  ran  so  high  that  in  the 
summer  of  1865  an  interruption  of  their  good  relations,  if 
not  the  outbreak  of  war,  appeared  almost  unavoidable.    The 
evil  day  was  put  off  for  a  time  by  the  Gastein  Convention,  a 
treaty  concluded  on  August  14  by  Count  von  Blome,  the 
Austrian  plenipotentiary,  and  the  Pnissian  Minister,  Bis- 
marck ;  and  signed  a  few  days  afterwards  by  the  Emperoi 
Francis   Joseph    and    King  William.      By  this  treaty  the 
Austrian  Emperor,   in  return   for  a  money  compensation, 
resigned  all  his  rights  in  the  Duchy  of  Lauenburg  in  favour 
of  the  King  of  Prussia  ;  and  it  wai.  decided  that,  till  the 
question  of  inheritance  should  be  settled,  Schleswig  should 
be  placed  under  Prussian,  and  HolstCin  under  Austrian 


XX.] 


PRUSSIA  AND  AUSTRIA. 


249 


administration.  The  port  of  Kiel  was  in  the  meantime  to 
be  occupied  by  Prussia,  though  open  to  the  fleets  of  both 
Powers. 

7.  Further  disputes  between  Prussia  and  Austria.     Pre- 
parations for  War.     Alliance  between  Prussia  and  Italy. — 
The  Prussians  took  possession  of  the  Duchy  of  Lauenburg  on 
September  i.     At  the  same  time,  the  Government  which  had 
been  set  up  by  the  two  Powers  in  common  was  dissolved ; 
and   General  von  Gablenz  entered  Kiel  as  the  Austrian 
viceroy  in  Holstein,  while  Herr  von  Manteuffel  began  his 
duties  in  Flensburg  as  Prussian  representative  in  Schleswig. 
But  the  difficulties  between  the  two  rival  Powers  were  not 
lessened  by  this  arrangement.     It  would  not  have  suited 
the  designs  of  the  Prussian  Government  if  they  had  been. 
Whether  or  not  Herr  (now  Count)  von  Bismarck,  in  inducing 
Austria  to  join  Prussia  in  carrying  on  the  Danish  war  apart 
from  the  Confederation,  had  foreseen  the  difficulties  likely 
to  arise  on  the  conclusion  of  peace,  and  resolved  to  bring  to 
an  issue  the  question  as  to  the  position  to  be  held  in  future 
in  Germany  by  Prussia  and  Austria  ;  there  can  be  no  doubt 
he  had  now  made  up  his  mind  to  involve  the  two  Powers  in  a 
great  and  decisive  struggle.     An  occasion  of  quarrel  soon 
arose.     Herr  von  Manteuffel  strictly  forbade  all  agitation  in 
Schleswig  in  favour  of  Prince  Augustenburg.     On  the  other 
hand,  Austria,  which  was  no  more  willing  now  than  formerly 
that  the  Duchies  should  come  into  the  possession  of  Piussia, 
allowed  the  Prince's  friends  to  promote  his  cause  in  Holstein 
as  much  as  they  chose.      On  January  26,  1866,  Count  Bis- 
marck addressed  a  formal  protest  to  the  Austrian  Govern- 
ment against  its  policy  in  Holstein.   The  Austrian  Minister, 
Count  Mensdorff,  replied,  on  February  7,  by  asserting  that 
the  Austrian  policy  must  be  maintained.     It  was  now  very 
evident  that  war  could  not  long  be  deferred.     The  fortresses 
in  the  Saxon  and  Silesian  provinces  of  Prussia  were  put  iu 


250 


I^ECENT  EVENTS. 


[chap. 

™°^''f '"'''•  "^^i^A^i^t^ave  orders  for  t"i^. 

P^^ition  bv  ent.  ''•  ^""'^^g^^-"/  strengthened  her 

position  by  entering  mto  an  alliance  with  Italy  in  con.^ 
quence  of  which  the  latter  Power  agreed  to  join  pLsi"  in' 
declaring  war  against  Austria,  while  Prussla'undertooknlt 

Xlt  ''"^  ^" """  "^^ ''™--  °^  ^--  ^^^^^ 

Austrii  »=.=  H        \'""'''  °*^  "«=se  preparations,  and  while 

a"in  t  P^sslrco     ^"'""'  :°  "^"^  "''^  Confederation 
Dosll  fir  r   ^  '^'''^^''^  ^-"""^  '■°™='^d  with  a  pro- 

was    ha    NorTh  T"'""°"  °!  ""=  Con-federation.     His  Jan 
was  that  North  Germany  should,  in  military  matters  be- 

lead  i^ tu'thV     "'''  ""i^  ^"^'"^  '■'"'^  «---  '-k  the 
leaa  m  bouth  Germany.     At  the  snmr.  *;«,«  u 

that  U,ereshou,dbea  K^rese^StitnsJrbl  XeTb 

tlra's  ""  "'^""""  ^'^■"^-k  --''-'ed  man; 

9-  Attempts  to  avert  war.-The  war  which  every  div 
eemed  to  render  more  certain  was  far  from  being  pTput' 
m  Prussia.     It  was  regarded  as  "a  war  of  brothers  "and 
many  petitions  were  addressedno  the  King  urgin.  hta  even 
at  the  last  moment  to  preserve  peace.     But  th°e  pLs  a^ 
Government  was  not  lightly  to  be  turned  from  its  p      ose 
In  the  beginning  of  May  orders  were  issued  for  the  mo 
b.l-mion  of  the  entire  army.     Austria,  on  her  side  brLeht 
up  troops  from  all  mrfQ  r.^  fK^  tt      •  '  Drought 

them  in^Bohemia In  oravif  Fo7:"'  "^'  concentrated 
hones  thit  th^  c^.  '^f  ^^^^^  For  a  moment  there  w(r> 
neutra  IpI  ""'^^^  '"^"  >'^^  ^'^  ^"^'^ed  aside,  for  the 

To  dt  to  s^^^^^^^^^^^  ^'"  ^  ^^"^—  ^^-"Ici  b;  called 

ofEuropl     B^^^^  ^^^^^^^"^^  ^e  peace 

i^urope.    But  the  proposal  fell  to  the  ground  through  the 


XX.]     WAR  BETWEEN  PRUSSIA  AND  AUSTRIA.     251 


obstinacy   of  Austria.      Nothing   then   remained  but  the 
conflict  for  which  all  Germany  was  prepared. 

10.  Outbreak  of  war.— The  first  open  act  of  hostility 
took  place  in  the  Duchies  which  had  nominally  given  rise  to 
the  dispute.  On  June  7,  Herr  von  Manteuffel,  the  governor 
of  Schleswig,  entered  Holstein,  and  compelled  General  von 
Gablenz  to  withdraw  with  his  troops  from  the  Duchy. 
Austria  was  indignant  at  this  insult,  and  urged  that  it  was 
the  duty  of  the  Confederation  to  resist  with  all  its  forces  a 
Power  which  had  thus  violated  an  essential  principle  of  the 
Confederate  constitution.  Most  of  the  minor  States  sup- 
ported Austria,  and  on  June  14  it  was  decided  to  mobilize 
the  army  of  the  Confederation,  exclusive  of  the  Prussian 
contingent  The  Prussian  plenipotentiary  in  the  Diet,  by 
command  of  his  Government,  at  once  declared  that  Prussia 
no  longer  recognized  the  Diet  as  existing,  and,  having 
announced  the  scheme  of  a  new  constitution  by  which 
Austria  was  excluded  from  Germany,  withdrew  from  the 

Assembly. 

II.  Real  causes  of  the  war.— It  cannot  be  too  carefully 
remembered  that  the  war  now  about  to  begin,  and  which 
proved  one  of  the  most  rapid  and  decisive  in  history,  had 
'n  reality  very  little  to  do  with  the  petty  question  with 
which  it  was  nominally  associated.  The  dispute  with 
respect  to  the  Duchies  was  the  occasion,  it  was  not  the 
cause,  of  the  war.  The  causes  which  really  led  to  it  had 
been  in  operation  at  least  since  the  time  of  Frederick  the 
Great  For  centuries  Austria  had  led  Germany.  From 
the  moment  when  Prussia  became  strong  enough  to  be 
r  garded  as  a  rival  of  Austria,  a  struggle  to  settle  the 
question  as  to  which  Power  was  permanently  to  guide  the 
destinies  of  the  Fatherland  became  inevitable.  As  we 
have  seen,  this  question  acquired  great  prominence  during 
the  brief  revolutionary  period  of  1848-49-     The  time  foi 


252 


RECENT  EVENTS. 


[chap. 


settling  it  had  now  come.     Those  who  wished  Germany  to 
become  great  and  progressive,  even  if  they  could  not  ap- 
prove  of  the  violence  with  which  Bismarck  had  hurried  on 
the  war,  could  not  but  desire  that  Prussia  should  be  suc- 
cessful.    No  one  acquainted  with  the  condition  of  the  tw(» 
States  doubted  on  which  side  victory  would  declare  itself. 
Prussia  was  comparatively  small ;  but  her  population  was 
very  loyal,  and  united  by  a  greater  number  of  common 
aims  than  that  of  Austria ;  and  her  army  was  perhaps  the 
most   intelligent   and   highly   organized  in   Europe.      The 
needle-gun  also  gave  the  Prussian  troops  a  great  advantage 
over  those  of  Austria.     The  Prussian  plan  of  campaign  was 
drawn  up  by   Von  Mo  like,  the  chief  of  the  General  Staff, 
and  one  of  the  greatest  and  most  scientific  generals  of  the 

present  century. 

12.  Hessen-Cassel,  Saxony,  and  Hanover  overrun  by  the 
Prussians.— Of  the  smaller  North  German  States,  Saxony, 
Hanover,   Hessen-Cassel,   and   Nassau  had   declared  for 
Austria.     On  June  i6  General  von  Beyer  entered  Plessen- 
Cassel,  and  without  opposition  seized  the  capital,  the  Elector 
himself  being  taken  prisoner.      On  the  same  day  Prince 
Frederick  Charles  and  General  Herwarth  von  Bitten/eld 
crossed  the  Saxon  frontier,  and  in  a  few  days  made  them- 
selves masters  of  the  whole  of  Saxony,  with  the  unimportant 
exception  of  the  fortress  of  Konigstein.     The  Saxon  troops, 
accompanied  by  the  King,  and  commanded  by  the  Crown 
Prince,  had  gone  to  join  the  Austrians  in  Bohemia.     Mean- 
while, General   von  Manteiiffel  had  with  his   troops  left 
Holstcin,  and  joined  General  von  Falkenstein  near  Har- 
burg  in  Hanover.     King  George  hastily  left  his  capital,  and 
placed  himself  at  the  head  of  his  army  near  Gottingen.    He 
wished  to  join  the  Bavarians  ;  but  as  Hessen-Cassel  was  in 
possession  of  the  Prussians,  and  as  by  marching  to  the 
south-east  he  would  have  to  tight  his  way  through  Prussian 


XX.] 


BA TTLE  OF  KONIGGRATZ, 


253 


( 


troops  and  the  army  of  Coburg-Gotha^  this  was  no  easy 
task.  The  Prussian  lines  were  drawn  gradually  closer  and 
closer  around  the  Hanoverians.  On  June  27  a  body  of 
Prussians  were  defeated  at  Langensalza.  But  this  success 
was  of  no  real  service  to  King  George.  He  was  surrounded 
on  all  sides;  and  the  help  which  he  expected  from  the 
Bavarians  did  not  come.  On  June  29  he  capitulated  with 
his  whole  army. 

13.  The  Prussians  cross  the  Bohemian  frontier. — The 
northern  army  of  Austria— so  called  to  distinguish  it  from 
the  army  which  carried  on  the  war  against  Italy — occupied 
the  country  from  the  east  of  Austrian  Silesia  westwards  to 
the  neighbourhood  of  Prague.  It  was  commanded  by  Field- 
Marshal  Benedekydind  numbered,  taking  in  the  Saxon  army, 
about  280,000  men.  The  Prussian  forces  were  divided  into 
three  armies.  The  first,  made  up  of  about  100,000  men, 
was  stationed,  under  Prince  Frederick  Charles,  in  Lower 
Silesia.  The  Crown  Prince  commanded  the  second,  which 
numbered  about  116,000  men,  and  occupied  Upper  Silesia. 
The  third,  amounting  to  about  40,000  men,  acted  as  the 
right  wing  of  the  first  It  was  under  General  von  Bitten- 
feld,  and  was  in  possession  of  Saxony.  When  the  way  had 
been  cleared  by  the  occupation  of  Saxony,  the  three  armies 
were  ordered  to  cross  the  Bohemian  frontier,  and  to  un  te 
near  Gitschin,  This  was  done  in  the  course  of  a  few  days. 
Prince  Frederick  Charles  won  an  important  victory  near 
Gitschin;  and  the  left  wing  of  the  Crown  Prince's  army, 
under  General  von  Steinmeiz,  defeated  the  Austrians  at 
Nachod  and  Skaliiz. 

14.  Battle  of  Kdniggratz. — The  united  army  was  joined 
on  July  2  by  King  William,  who  assumed  the  supreme  com- 
mand. Next  day  the  great  battJe  of  Kbniggrdtz  was  fought 
Benedek  had  taken  up  a  good  position,  protected  in  front 
by  the  Elbe  and  the  Bistritz^  on  the  right  by  the  fortress  of 


254 


RECENT  E  VEN  J  S. 


[chap. 


Josepkstadt,  and  on  the  left  by  that  of  Koniggrdtz.     His 
head-quarters  were  on  the  heights  overlooking  the  village  of 
Sadowa.     The  battle  began  about  seven  o'clock   in  the 
morning.     Prince  Frederick  Charles  hoped  to  be  supported 
by  the  Crown   Prince;    but  the  anny  of  the  latter  was 
stationed  at  some  distance,  and  as  rain  had  fallen  heavily 
during  the  night,  was  hindered  in  its  march  by  the  state  of 
the  roads.   The  battle  raged  with  great  fury  for  some  hours. 
Manv  glances  were  cast  in  the  direction  from  which  the 
Crown  Prince  was  expected.     At  length  his  troops  were 
seen  in  the  distance ;  and  early  in  the  afternoon  his  army 
was  in  the  heat  of  the  battle.    The  Austrians  could  not  long 
resist  the  enemy  thus  reinforced.    The  Crown  Prince  broke 
through  their  right  wing,  General  von  Bittcnfeld  through      > 
their  left ;  and  the  centre  retreated  before  Prince  Frederick 
Charles.     The  retreat  of  the  Austrians  was  at  first  orderly ; 
but,  as  they  were  vigorously  pursued,  their  ranks  were 
broken,  and  each  saved  himself  by  flight  or  as  he  best 
could.     In  this  great  battle,  one  of  the  most  important  in 
modern  history,  the  Prussians  lost  about  10,000  men;  but 
the  Austrians  lost  about  20,000,  besides  18,000  prisoners. 

15.  Prussian  successes.— After  the  battle  of  Koniggratz 
the  Prussian  arms  were  everywhere  successful.  On  July  1 5 
another  victory  was  gained  at  Tobitschau,  to  the  south  of 
Olmiiiz,  The  Austrian  army  escaped  into  Hungary,  pur- 
sued by  Prince  Frederick  Charles ;  while  the  second  and 
third  Prussian  armies  pushed  on  towards  Vienna.  In 
central  Gennany  the  success  of  the  Prussians  was  equally 
decided.  Setting  out  from  Eisenach  on  July  i,  .md  march- 
ing  towards  the  Main,  General  von  Falkenstein  drove  the 
Confederate  troops  before  him,  and  triumphantly  entered 
Frankfurt  on  July  16.  Two  days  before,  the  remnant  of 
the  Confederate  Diet,  feeling  Frankfurt  unsafe,  had  taken 
refuge  in  Augsburg.      General  von   Falkenstein  was  ap- 


XX.] 


THE  PEACE  OF  PRAGUE, 


255 


pointed  Governor-General  of  Bohemia ;  but  his  successor. 
General  von  Manteuffel,  conducted  the  campaign  with 
equal  skill  and  energy.  V* 

16.  The  Peace  of  Prag:ue.— Austria,  feeling  that  the  \ 
struggle  had  been  practically  decided  at  Koniggratz,  had 
for  some  time  been  trying  to  obtain  an  armistice.  The 
negotiations  were  at  first  unsuccessful ;  but  on  July  26  the 
preliminaries  of  peace  were  agreed  upon  between  the  two 
countries,  and  the  smaller  States  also  hastened  to  come  to 

terms.     The  Peace  of  Prague  was  signed  on  August  23. 

• 
By  this  treaty  Austria  was  for  ever  excluded  from  Germany. 

She  undertook  to  pay  forty  millons  of  thalers  as  an  in- 
demnity for  the  expenses  of  the  war,  in  return  for  half  of 
which  sum  she  resigned  all  her  rights  in  Schleswig-Holstein 
in  favour  of  Prussia.  Peace  was  also  concluded  with 
Bavaria,  Wiirtemberg,  and  Baden  before  the  end  of  August; 
with  Hessen-Dannstadt  in  September;  and  with  Saxony  in 
October.  Bavaria  had  to  cede  certain  small  strips  of 
teiTitory ;  and  Hessen-Darmstadt,  besides  giving  up  the 
Landgraviate  of  Hessen-Hombiirg,  had  to  yield  the  right  of 
garrisoning  Mainz.  But,  what  was  far  more  important,  the 
two  latter  countries,  together  with  Wurtembcrg  and  Baden, 
entered  into  a  secret  alliance  with  Prussia  for  the  defence 
of  Germany,  by  which  they  engaged  to  give  the  Prussian 
King  the  supreme   command  of  their  troops  in  time  of 

war. 

17.  Annexations  to  Prussian  territory.  King  William 
and  Parliament— Meanwhile,  Prussia  had  annexed  to  her 
own  territory  Hanover,  Hessen-Cassel,  Nassau,  and  Frank- 
fttrt.  King  William  returned  to  Berlin,  amid  the  en- 
thusiasm of  his  subjects,  on  August  4.  The  newly-elected 
House  of  Representatives,  dazzled  by  the  successes  of  the 
army,  willingly  forgave  the  Government  for  the  uncon- 
stitutional acts  by  which  it  had  carried  out  its  scheme  of 


2^6 


RECENT  EVENTS, 


[CHAP. 


military  reform;    and  a  reconciliation  took  place  which 
nothing  has  since  seriously  disturbed. 

1 8.  The  North  German  Confederation.— The  South  Ger 
man  States  remained  independent;  but  all  States  to  the 
north  of  the  Main,  including  the  northern  half  of  Hessen- 
Darmstadt,  united  to  form  a  North  German  Confederation 
under  the  leadership  of  Prussia,  the  whole  military  system 
of  the  Confederation  being  placed  under  the  control  of  that 
country.  On  February  24,  1867,  the  first  Diet  of  the  Con- 
federation met  at  BerUn,  and  began  its  deliberations  on  the 

constitution. 

19.  France  and  Prussia.— Germany  had  scarcely  emerged 
from  its  great  national  struggle  when  it  was  threatened  by  a 
new  danger.  France  had  been  violently  excited  by  the 
Prussian  successes.  Even  before  the  preliminaries  of  peace 
were  settled,  she  gave  Prussia  to  understand  that  she  would 
have  to  be  "compensated"  for  the  political  changes  to 
which  these  successes  must  give  rise ;  and  early  in  August, 

1866,  the  French  ambassador  at  Berlin  formally  demanded 
the  cession  of  the  left  bank  of  the  Rhine.  But  Prussia  was 
firm,  and  even  at  the  risk  of  a  second  war  refused  to  yield 
to  this  demand.  The  Emperor  Napoleon,  anxious  not  to 
be  wholly  bafitled,  entered  into  negotiations  with  the  King 
of  Holland  for  the  purchase  of  Luxemburg,  which  had 
formerly  belonged  to  the  German  Confederation.  Prussia 
protested  ;  and  for  a  time  the  quarrel  seemed  likely  to  end 
in.  wai,  While  the  dispute  was  going  on,  Count  Bismarck 
suddenly  surprised  Europe  by  the  publication,  in  March, 

1867,  of  the  secret  treaty  between  Prussia  and  the  South 
German  States.  The  danger  was  warded  off  for  a  time  by 
a  Conference  held  in  London,  through  which  Luxemburg 
was  definitely  separated  from  Germany,  and  formed  into  a 
neutral  State,  its  neutrality  being  guaranteed  by  the  Great 
Powers. 


:-v 


XX.]     THE  NORTH  GERMAN  CONFEDERATION.     257 


20.  Constitution  of  the  Confederation.  Customs  Parlia- 
ment Obstacles  to  full  union. — The  constitution  of  the 
North  German  Confederation  was  quickly  settled,  and  came 
into  force  on  July  i,  1867.  The  affairs  of  the  Confederation 
were  to  be  regulated  by  a  Diet  elected  by  the  North  Ger- 
man people,  and  by  a  Federal  Council  made  up  of  the 
representatives  of  the  North  German  Governments.  The 
King  of  Prussia  was  to  be  president  of  the  Confederation. 
Although  this  constitution  was  a  great  advance  on  the  old 
state  of  things,  none  looked  on  it  as  final.  A  great  party — 
the  so-called  National-Liberal  party — had  already  been 
formed,  whose  leading  aim  was  the  union  of  South  Ger- 
many with  the  Confederation.  This  party  warmly  sup- 
ported Count  Bismarck  both  in  the  Confederate  Diet  and 
in  the  Prussian  Parliament  A  Customs  Parliament,  elected 
by  the  whole  of  Germany,  met  in  Berlin  in  May,  1868 ;  and 
Baden  and  Hessen-Darmstadt  signed  a  convention  by 
which  their  military  system  was  placed  upon  the  same 
footing  as  that  of  the  Confederation.  Baden  would  willingly 
have  become  a  member  of  the  Confederation  ;  but  the 
other  South  German  States  were  opposed  to  union.  In 
Wiirtemberg  the  Democratic  party,  in  Bavaria  the  so-called 
Ultramontane  party,  were  the  chief  foes  of  the  National 
Liberals.  The  Democrats  hat,ed  Prussia  for  its  despotic 
tendencies,  the  Ultramontanes  for  its  Protestantism.  The 
opposition  of  these  parties  was  so  bitter  that  it  seemed 
very  doubtful  whether  the  complete  union  of  Germany 
could  be  achieved  during  the  present  generation.  Sud- 
denly an  event  happened  by  which,  amid  the  applause 
of  the  \vhole  Fatherland,  the  long  wished-for  goal  was 
reached. 

21.  France  declares  war  against  Prussia. — Early  in  July, 
1870,  Leopold,  the  hereditary  Prince  of  Hohenzollcrti,  at  the 
Tequest  of  the  Spanish  Goverrmient,  and  with  the  permis- 


258 


RECENT  EVENTS. 


[chap. 


sion  of  King  William  of  Prussia  as  head  of  the  Hohenzollern 
family,  became  a  candidate  for  the  Spanish  throne.    The 
Emperor  Napoleon,  who  had  never  heartily  accepted  the 
reconstitution  of  Germany,  and  who  was  anxious  for  an 
opportunity  to  establish  his  waning  popularity  in  France, 
resolved  to  make  Leopold's  candidature  the  pretext  for  a 
war  with  Germany.     A  cry  was  raised  in  the  French  Legis- 
lative Assembly  that  a  foreign  Power  was  about  to  place 
one  of  its  princes  on  the  throne  of  Charles  V.     A  section  of 
the  French  people  took  up  the  cry,  and  called  loudly  for  the 
submission  of  Germany  to  the  wish  of  France.     To  take 
away  all  cause  of  dispute,  the   Prince  of   Hohenzollern 
formally  resigned  his  candidature  on  July  12.     Not  content 
with   this  triumph,   Napoleon   insisted  that   the   King  of 
Prussia  should  give  an  assurance  to  France  that  the  candi- 
dature of  the  Prince  of  Hohenzollern  would  not  be  renewed. 
M.  Benedetti,  the  French  ambassador,  came  on  the  13th  to 
Ems,  where  the  King  was  staying,  and  on  a  public  promen- 
ade urged  this  demand.     King  William  not  only  refused  to 
grant  it,  but  declined  to  listen  further  to  AL  Benedetti  on 
the  subject     An  official  telegram  from  Ems  informed  the 
German  Governments  of  this  fact  next  day.     War  had  now 
become  certain ;  and  the  King  hurried  towards  Berhn.     On 
the  15th  he  was  met  at  the  Brandenburg  station  by  the 
Crown  Prince,  Counts  von  Bismarck,  von  Moltke,  and  von 
Roon,  and  informed  of  what  had  taken  place  that  day  in 
the  French  Legislative  Assembly.  All  that  was  now  wanting 
was  the  formal  declaration  of  war.     While  still  in  Branden- 
burg, therefore,  the  King  of  Prussia  gave  orders  for  the 
mobilization  of  the  North  German  army.     Next  day   the 
Federal  Council  met,  and  expressed  its  hearty  concurrence 
with  the  views  of  the  Government ;  and  on  the  19th  the 
Confederate  Diet  was  opened  by  the  King  with  a  speech  of 
great  dignity  and  moderation.      On   the   same  day,  the 


XX.] 


WAR  WITH  FRANCE, 


259 


French  declaration  of  war  was  received  and  communicated 
to  the  Assembly. 

22.  The  South  German  States  remain  true  to  Prussia. 
Real  causes  of  the  War. — Napoleon,  misinformed  as  to  the 
real  state  of  Germany,  had  hoped  that  the  South  Germans, 
if  they  did  not  actually  join  France,  would  at  least  remain 
neutral  But,  though  in  Bavaria  and  Wiirtemberg  there 
were  strong  parties  in  favour  of  such  a  course,  they  were 
true  to  their  engagements.  On  the  i6th  the  King  of 
Bavaria  and  the  Grand  Duke  of  Baden  ordered  the 
mobilization  of  their  troops ;  and  next  day  the  King  of 
Wiirtemberg  followed  their  example.  On  the  20th  the 
South  German  princes  formally  announced  to  the  King 
of  Prussia  that  their  forces  were  at  his  disposal;  and  the 
Prussian  Crown  Prince  at  once  left  Berlin  to  take  the 
command  of  the  united  army.  Throughout  all  Germany 
tlie  prospect  of  the  war  excited  much  enthusiasm.  It 
must  not  be  supposed  that  the  miserable  Hohenzollern 
dispute  had  really  anything  to  do  with  the  war.  It  was  of 
even  less  importance  than  the  Schleswig-Holstein  quarrel 
had  been  in  the  Austro-Prussian  war.  In  a  few  days  the 
world  almost  forgot  that  the  Prince  of  Hohenzollern  had 
been  a  candidate  for  the  Spanish  throne.  What  France 
was  really  about  to  fight  for  was  the  maintenance  of  her 
supposed  supremacy  in  Europe.  Germany  had  taken  up 
arms  in  her  own  defence,  and  perhaps  she  was  not  unwilling 
to  engage  in  a  struggle  by  which  she  might  thoroughly 
humble  a  Power  that  had  for  centuries  lost  no  opportunity 
of  adding  to  her  divisions,  robbing  her  of  her  territory,  and 
depriving  her  of  her  just  place  among  the  nations. 

23.  First  victories  of  the  Germans. — The  German  army, 
including  the  forces  both  of  North  and  South  Germany, 
numbered  more  than  a  million  men.  This  vast  force  was 
onder  the  supreme  command  of  the  King  of  Prussia,  whose 


26o 


RECENT  EVENTS, 


[chap. 


chief  adviser  was  again  General  von  Moltkc,  head  of  the 
General  Staff.     It  was  divided  into  three  armies,  some  part 
of  each  of  which  remained  behind  for  the  protection  of  the 
country.      The  first,  under  General   von  Steinmetz,  was 
placed  near  Trier  as  the  right  wing ;  the  second,  under 
Prince  Frederick  Charles^  assembled  in  Rhenish  Bavaria; 
the  third,  consisting  of  the  South  German  army  and  of  three 
Prussian  corps,  and  commanded  by  the   Prussian  Crown 
Prince^  occupied  the  right  bank  of  the  Rhine  from  Mann- 
heim to  RastatL     By  the  end  of  July  these  three  armies 
were  ready  for  action,  and  some  skirmishing  took  place. 
But  real  fighting  did  not  begin  till  next  month.    On  August  4 
the  third  army  began  its  march  towards  the   Lauter,  and 
the  first  battle  was  fought  at  Weissenbnrg.     The  French 
were  defeated,  and  the  whole  of  the  third  army  encamped 
on  French  soil.     On  the  6th  a  great  victory  was  won  by  the 
same  army  at  Worth  over  Marshal  MacMahon,    The  loss 
on  both  sides  was  heavy ;  but  the  defeat  of  the  French  was 
complete.      They  fled   in   such  wild  disorder  that   Mac- 
Mahon's   corps  was  for  some  time  hopelessly  scattered. 
The  Crown   Prince  at  once  began  his  march  across  the 
Vosges  mountains,  leaving  the  Baden  division  to  besiege 
Strassburg.     On  the  day  of  the  battle  of  Worth  a  part  of 
the  first  and  second  armies  gained  a  brilliant  victory  near 
Saarbriicken.      The   bravery    with  which  the  heights   of 
Spicheren  were  stormed  has  rarely  been  equalled.     After 
this  battle  the  whole  German  army  entered  France. 

24.  Further  victories.  Battle  of  Sedan.  Surrender  of 
Napoleon. — The  three  German  armies  now  pressed  on 
towards  the  Moselle.  The  scene  of  the  great  battles  which 
were  next  fought,  and  which  rapidly  followed  one  another, 
was  the  country  immediately  in  front  of  Mets.  Marshal 
BazM?tey  who  had  now  assumed  the  supreme  command  of 
*he  French  anny,  and  who  apparently  wished  to  join  Mac- 


XX.] 


BATTLE  OF  SEDAN. 


261 


Mahon,  began  his  march  from  Metz  on  the  14th ;  but  he 
was  attacked  by  a  portion  of  the  first  German  army  at 
CourcelleSy  and  driven  back.  Next  day  he  again  set  out 
towards  Verdun.  On  the  i6th  the  battle  of  Mars-la-Tour 
or  Vionville  was  fought  It  continued  from  morning  till 
night,  and  portions  both  of  the  first  and  second  armies  took 
part  in  it  The  result  was  unfavourable  to  the  French  ;  but 
on  the  1 8th  they  were  still  more  decidedly  defeated  at 
Graveloiiey  and  obliged  to  take  refuge  in  Metz.  That 
fortress  was  instantly  surrounded  by  the  first  and  second 
armies,  the  supreme  command  of  both  of  which  was  given 
to  Prince  Frederick  Charles.  The  Prussian  Crown  Prince 
had  awaited  at  Nancy  the  issue  of  the  battles  before  Metz. 
His  orders  now  were  to  proceed  against  Marshal  Mac- 
Mahon, who  had  reorganised  and  greatly  strengthened  his 
army  at  Chalons.  To  aid  the  Crown  Prince  in  this  difficult 
undertaking,  a  fourth  army  was  formed  from  corps  which 
had  hitherto  belonged  to  the  second  army.  It  was  in 
the  end  placed  under  the  Crown  Prince  of  Saxony,  and 
called  the  army  of  the  Maes.  The  King  of  Prussia  him- 
self assumed  the  supreme  command  of  the  armies  of  the 
two  Crown  Princes.  Both  were  in  full  march  westwards, 
and  the  Prussian  Crown  Prince  had  fixed  his  head-quarters 
at  Ligny^  when  the  news  came  that  Marshal  MacMahon 
had  left  Chiilons.  It  was  soon  discovered  that  he  had  been 
in  Rheimsj  and  was  marching  towards  Re  the  I.  It  was  there- 
fore concluded  that  he  was  making  for  Metz,  with  the 
intention  of  operating  with  Marshal  Bazaine  against  Prince 
Frederick  Charles.  The  Germans  at  once  turned  to  the 
right,  and  marched  in  pursuit  of  the  enemy.  MacMahon 
had  concentrated  his  troops  near  Vouziers.  On  August  28 
he  advanced  towards  the  Macs  in  the  direction  of  Beau- 
mont.  Two  days  afterwards  an  important  battle  was  fought 
near  the  latter  place,  the  result  of  which  was  that  the 


262 


RECENT  EVENTS. 


[chap. 


XX.] 


SIEGE  OF  PARIS. 


263 


French  were  driven  towards  Sedan,  while  the  road  leading 
to  Metz  was  occupied  by  the  Germans.  MacMahon's  great 
scheme  was  thus  already  baffled.  The  decisive  battle  of 
the  campaign  was  fought  on  September  i.  After  severe 
fighting  the  French  were  driven  from  all  sides  into  Sedan, 
which  the  Germans  surrounded,  and  into  which  they  were 
prepared  to  pour  a  destructive  fire.  Nothing  remained  for 
the  French  but  to  surrender.  The  Emperor  Napoleon,  who 
had  for  some  time  freely  exposed  himself  on  the  battle-field, 
yielded  his  sword  to  King  William ;  and  next  day  the  two 
monarchs  had  an  interview.  The  conditions  of  the  capitula- 
tion were  agreed  upon  by  Count  von  Moltke  and  General 
VVimpffen,  the  latter  having  assumed  the  command  of  the 
FrenT:h  early  on  the  previous  day,  when  Marshal  Mac- 
Mahon  was  disabled  by  a  severe  wound.  All  the  troops  in 
Sedan,  amounting  to  84,000  men,  together  with  50  generals 
and  5,000  other  officers,  yielded  themselves  prisoners  of 
war,  while  the  entire  war  material  of  the  army  became  the 
property  of  the  Germans.  Those  officers  who  passed  their 
word  of  honour  to  take  no  future  part  in  the  war  were  set 
free.  The  Emperor  Napoleon  received  as  his  residence  the 
Castle  of  WilhebnsJwhe^  near  Cassei. 

25.  Paris  besieged. — The  tidings  of  the  French  Emperor's 
surrender  caused  much  excitement  in  Germany.  Many 
hoped  that  the  war  would  now  cease ;  but  this  hope  was 
soon  shown  to  be  groundless.  The  German  people  had 
made  up  their  minds  that  the  cession  of  Eisass  and  German 
Lorraine  should  be  a  condition  of  peace.  The  French 
Government  of  the  National  Defence,  which  displaced 
the  Empire,  at  once  declared  that  France  would  give 
Gennany  any  sum  of  money,  but  would  not  yield  an  inch  of 
its  territory  or  a  stone  of  its  fortresses.  Germany,  therefore, 
all  but  unanimously  approved  of  the  continuance  of  the  war. 
Almost  immediately  after  the  battle  of  Sedan,  the  armies 


VI 


of  the  t\io  Crown  Princes  began  their  march  towards  Paris. 
On  September  5  King  William  entered  Rheims,  and  in  a 
fortnight  afterwards  the  Germans  were  before  Paris,  the 
third  army  occupying  the  country  to  the  south  and  south- 
east, the  army  of  the  Maes  that  to  the  north  and  north-east. 
The  Prussian   Crown  Prince  fixed  his  head  quarters   m 
Versailles,  where  those  of  King  William  were  also  placed 
on  October  5.      Meanwhile  two   distinct  efforts  to  break 
through  the  German  lines  had  been  made,  one  by  General 
Ducrot  on   September   19,  another  by  General   Viiioy  on 
September  30 ;  but  both  times  the  French  were  driven  back- 
On  October  13  and  October  21  similar  attempts  were  made, 
but  with  a  like  result     The  French  were  somewhat  more 
successful  on  October  28,  when  they  took  possession  of  the 
village  of  Le  Bourgct,  and  began  to  mass  troops  there. 
Two  days  afterwards,  after  a  brave  defence,  they  had  to 

retreat 

26.    Surrender  of  Metz.      Further   French   disasters.— 
Meanwhile,  a  new  French  army,  called  the  army  of  the 
Loire,  had  been  raised  and  had  begun  to  operate  with  a 
view  to  the  relief  of  Paris  ;  and  General  Faidherbe  had  also 
formed  an  army  in  the  north.     But  fresh  disasters  had  be- 
fallen France.     Strassburg  had  surrendered  on  September 
27;    and  on   October  27    Marshal    Bazaine,  after  having 
several  times  tried  to  escape  from  Metz,  capitulated  with 
his  whole  army,  which  consisted  of  I73;000  men,  with  3 
marshals  and  6000  officers.     Metz  itself  was  surrendered  to 
the  Germans.      The  troops  which  had  so  long  surrounded 
Metz  were  then  free  to  prosecute  the  war  which  had  anew 
broken  out  on  the  field.     The  first  army  was  placed  under 
General  von   Manteuffel,  and,  with  the  exception  of  the 
troops  left  bel  md  for  the  occupation  of  Metz  and  Lorraine, 
proceeded  in  a  north-west  direction,  against   Faidherbe. 
The  greater  part  of  the  second  army  marched  towards  the 


264 


RECENT  EVENTS, 


[chap. 


south,  where  Prince  Frederick  Charles  was  to  assume  the 
supreme  command.  On  October  12  General  voii  der  Tann 
had  taken  possession  of  OrUans;  but  on  November  8,  his 
troops  being  enormously  outnumbered  by  the  army  of  the 
Loire,  he  retreated.  Next  day  he  was  hotly  attacked,  and 
on  the  loth  fell  back  upon  Tours.  He  was  joined  by  the 
Grand  Duke  of  Mecklenburg,  who  was  sent  with  troops 
from  Paris  to  hold  the  French  in  check  until  the  second 
army  should  come  up.  The  Grand  Duke  gained  some 
advantages  before  the  arrival  of  Prince  Frederick  Charles  ; 
but  when  the  latter  appeared,  the  army  of  the  Loire,  which 
had  begun  its  march  towards  Paris,  was  driven  back  at  all 
points,  and  on  December  4,  after  severe  fighting,  Orleans 
was  once  more  occupied  by  the  Germans.  The  army  of  the 
Loire  was  then  broken  up  into  two  great  divisions,  one 
under  General  Chanzy,  the  other  commanded  by  General 
Boiirbaki.  The  former  army  was  repeatedly  defeated,  and 
at  length  altogether  scattered,  by  Prince  Frederick  Charles; 
the  latter  marched  towards  the  east,  with  a  view  to  effect  a 
diversion  by  the  invasion  of  South  Germany.  In  the  north 
Faidherbe  displayed  great  energy ;  but  he  was  twice  de- 
feated in  the  neighbourhood  of  Amiens;  he  was  overcome 
also  at  Bapaume  and  St.  Quentin.  A  new  German  army, 
called  the  south  army,  was  formed  to  oppose  Bourbaki  in 
the  east,  and  placed  under  General  von  Manteuffel,  who 
was  succeeded  in  the  north  by  General  von  Goeben.  For 
a  moment  South  Germany  appeared  in  real  danger  from 
the  advance  of  Bourbaki,  for  although  he  was  pursued  by 
General  von  Manteuffel,  the  latter  was  far  in  the  rear.  The 
danger  was  averted  by  the  courage  of  General  von  Werder, 
who,  with  the  Baden  division,  had  for  some  time  been 
holding  Generals  Cambriel  and  Garibaldi  in  check,  and 
who  now  resolved,  at  whatever  cost,  to  prevent  the  further 
advance  of  Bourbaki's  army.      For  three  days  Bourbaki 


XX.] 


UNION  OF  GERMANY. 


26S 


strove,  with  his  large  army,  at  Hericourt,  to  drive  back 
Werder's  small  force;  but  the  Baden  troops  fought  with 
such  bravery  that  the  French,  on  January  17,  1 871,  were 
themselves  obliged  to  retreat  in  disorder.  Bourbaki  was 
displaced  by  General  Clinchant;  but  the  latter  succeeded 
no  better.  Harassed  on  every  side  by  General  von  Man- 
teuffel, Clinchant  crossed  the  Swiss  frontier  with  his  whole 
army,  consisting  of  84,000  men,  on  February  i. 

27.  Union  of  Germany.   King  William  declared  Emperor. 
-During  the  progress  of  the  war  the  South  Germans,  proud 
of  the  common   German  name,  began  to  feel  how  small 
are  the  points  of  difference  between  themselves  and  their 
northern  kinsfolk  compared  with  those  great  interests  by 
which  all  Gennans  are  united.     This  feeling  gave  rise  to 
a  desire  for  a  closer  union  with  the  Northern  Confederation ; 
and  in  the  middle  of  October,  1870,  plenipotentiaries  were 
sent  from  all  the   Southern   States  to  Versailles  for  the 
purpose  of  bringing  about  the  desired  change     The  result 
of  the  negotiations  was  that  treaties  were  signed  with  Hessen 
and  Baden  on  November  15  ;  with  Bavaria  on  November 
2X  ;   and  with  Wurtemberg  on  November  25.      By  these 
treaties,  which  afterwards    received  the  approval  of  the 
North  Gennan  Diet  and  the  South  German  Pariiaments, 
the  Northern  Confederation  was  changed  into  a  German 
Confederation.     This  change  was  accompanied  by  another 
of  great  importance.     On  December  4  King  Lewis  II  of 
Bavaria  proposed  to  the  other  German  sovereigns,  and  to 
the  Senates  of  the  three  free  towns,  that  the  President  of 
the    Confederation    should  receive    the   title  of    German 
Emperor.      The  proposal  being  agreed  to,  king  Wilham 
was;  on  January  18,  1871,  in  the  hall  of  Minors  m  the 
paUce  of  Versailles,  in  presence  of  a  brilliant  company  of 
German  princes  and  representatives  of  the  army,  solemnly 
proclaimed  Emperor  in  Germany. 


266 


RECENT  EVENTS. 


[CHAP. 


28   Peace  of  Frankfurt— On  the  following  day— the  very 
day  on  which  Faidherbe  was  defeated  at  St.  Quentin-the 
French  made  a  last  attempt  to  escape  from  Paris  ;  but  their 
plans  were  ill  arranged,  and  they  were  driven  back  with 
heavy  loss.     The  Government  of  the  National.  Defence 
feeling  that  further  resistance  was  now  impossible,  opened 
negotiations  with  a  view  to  peace.     On  January  28,  Pans 
formally  surrendered  ;  and  an  armistice  for  three  weeks  was 
concluded,  which,  however,  did  not  apply  to  the  military 
operations  in  the  eastern  provinces.     The  preliminaries  of 
peace  were  signed  on  February  26  by  Count  Bismarck  and 
the  South  German  plenipotentiaries  on  the  one  hand,  and 
by  MM.    Thiers  and  Favre  on  the  other.      According  to 
these,  France  ceded  to  the  German  Empire  the  province  of 
Elsass  (excluding  Belfort)  and  German  Lorraine  (including     / 
Metz  and  Thionville)  ;  and  undertook  to  pay  5,000  millions 
of  francs  as  an  indemnity  for  the  expenses  of  the  war.     On 
March  i  a  portion  of  the  German  troops  entered  Pans  and 
occupied  a  small  part  of  it ;  but  two  days  afterwards  they 
left  it,  the  National  Assembly  at  Bordeaux  having  already 
ratified  the    preliminaries  of   peace.      The  German  and 
French   plenipotentiaries,  who  met  at  Brussels  on  March 
27  for  the  purpose  of  concluding  a  treaty,  could  not  come 
to  an  agreement  on  various  points.       The  delay  caused 
by    the    misunderstandings,    and    the    troubled    state    of 
France,  ga.e  rise  to  an  uneasy  feeling  in  Gemiany.     Count 
Bismarck,  therefore,  himself  interfered,  and  on  May  6  met 
M.    Favre  at  Frankfurt.       Here   a  treaty  was    foraially 
signed  on  the  loth  ;   and  it  was  afterwards  ratified  by  the 
German  and  French  Governments.    The  treaty  of  Frankfurt 
differed  only  in  details  from  the  preliminaries  which  had 
before  been  concluded.       The  district  round  Belfort  was 
yielded  to  the  French  ,  but  in  return  the  latter  ceded  some 
additional  territory  in  Lorraine. 


XX.]  CONSTITUTION  OF  THE  EMPIRE,  26) 

29.  Feeling  of  the  Germans  as  to  the  War.— The  Ger- 
man people  were  displeased  that  France  was  allowed  to 
keep  Belfort ;  but  on  the  whole  they  regarded  the  results 
of  the  war  with  pride  and  pleasure.    The  ancient  military 
fame  of  Gennany  had  been  more  than  maintained ;  the 
Fatherland  had  been  united ;  and  the  national  sentiment 
was  gratified  by  the  conquest  of  the  long-lost  provinces  of 
Elsass  and  Lon-aine,  which  would  henceforth  form  a  de- 
fence against  French  attacks.     The  Austro-Prussian  war 
had  raised   Prussia  to  the  first  place  in  Germany ;   the 
present  war  raised  Germany  to  the  first  place  in  Europe. 

30.  Constitution  of  the  Empire.-The  Emperor  had  left 
Versailles  on  March  ^,     Ten  days  afterwards  he  entered 
Berlin;  and  on  March  21  the  first  Diet  of  the  new  Empire 
was  opened.    The  first  object  of  the  Diet  was  to  adapt  the 
constitution  to  the  altered  circumstances  of  Germany.     In 
less  than  a  month  this  task  was  completed.     Except  that  it 
is  more  extended  in  its  application,  the  new  constitution 
is  essentially  the  same  as  that  of  the  North  German  Con- 
federation.    Including  the  three  free  towns,  the  Empire 
consists  of  twenty-five  States.     Each  of  these  regulates  its 
own  affairs  in  so  far  as  they  do  not  affect  those  of  other 
States,  and  is  allowed  to  send  and  receive  diplomatic  re- 
presentatives.    What  concerns  the  whole  country  is  left  to 
the   Imperial  Government      In  joining  the  Confederation, 
Bavaria  and  Wurtemberg  retained  many  important  rights ; 
but  the  whole  tendency  of  future  events  must  be  to  limit 
the  action  of  individual  Governments,  and  to  place  greater 
power  in  the  hands  of  the  Imperial  authorities.     The  duties 
of  legislation  rest  with  the  Federal  Council  and  the  Diet ; 
the  executive  power  is  wielded  by  the  Emperor.     He  has 
the   right    to  declare  war   and  to   make  peace,  to  form 
alliances  and  to  conclude  treaties.     He  is  represented  by 
the    Imperial  Chancellor,  whom    he    appoints,  and  who 


268 


RECENT  EVENTS, 


[chap. 


presides  in  the  Federal  Council  and  guides  the  course  of 
public  business.  The  Imperial  Chancellor  is  also  the 
Minister  for  Foreign  Affairs. 

31.  Condition  of  Germany. — The  German  Empire  must 
not  be  confounded  with  the  Empire  which  ceased  to  exist 
in  1806.  It  is  the  restoration  of  the  old  German  Kingdom 
rather  than  of  the  Holy  Roman  Empire.  Some  fear  lest 
Prussia  should  become  too  powerful,  and  the  various  Ger- 
man States  be  moulded  too  much  after  one  pattern.  But 
influences  remain  to  prevent  such  a  result  All  the  States 
are  united  under  one  head  for  great  national  ends;  but 
each  has  a  certain  individuahty  of  its  own,  whose  roots 
are  in  some  cases  to  be  found  in  the  distant  past.  Bavaria, 
Wiirtemberg,  Baden,  Saxony,  and  the  other  minor  States 
have  each  a  history  as  distinct,  although  not  so  important, 
as  that  of  Prussia.  Unity,  which  patriots  so  long  strove 
to  win,  has  been  obtained ;  but  it  will  always  be  unity  in 
variety. 

32.  Scientific  and  Literary  Writers. — During  the  present 
century  Germany  has  maintained  the  high  place  in  science, 
literature,  and  art  which  she  had  previously  won  for  herself. 
No  other  country  has  an  intellectual  life  so  rich  and  many- 
sided.  It  would  be  impossible  to  give  here  the  names  of 
even  the  chief  writers  of  recent  times.  In  theology  and 
Biblical  criticism  we  find,  among  many  other  names,  those 
oi  Schleiermacher^  De  Wette^  Neander^  Ewald^  Baur^  Zeller^ 
and  Strauss.  Hegel  is  generally  regarded  as  the  most 
illustrious  German  philosopher  after  Kant  He  founded 
a  powerful  school,  which  is  now  split  up  into  different 
parties.  Schopenhauer^  Herbart,  and  Beneke  also  wrote 
well-known  philosophical  works.  Every  department  of 
physical  science  has  received  new  developments  during 
the  present  century  in  Germany.  In  his  "Kosmos,'* 
Alexander  von   Humboldt  presented  a  connected  view  of 


XX.] 


GERMAN  WRITERS. 


269 


the  great  forces  of  nature  which,  for  width  of  knowledge 
and  clearness  of  exposition,  has  never  been    surpassed. 
Ritter  stands  at  the  head  of  German  geographers.     Among 
the  astronomers  of  Germany  may  be  named  Zach,  Enke, 
and    Gauss.       Oken    made  great    discoveries    in    natural 
history.   Miiller,  Liebig,  Helmholtz,  Mayer,  Bunsen,  Kirch- 
hoff,  Haeckel,  are  only  a  few  out  of  many  whose  names  are 
associated  with  scientific  work  of  the  highest  order.    The 
world  may  be  said  to  owe  the  science  of  language  to  Ger- 
many.   Among  the  greatest  cultivators  of  this  science  may 
be  named  the  brothers   Grimm,  Bopp,  and  Pott.     Wolf, 
K.    O.   Muller,  Hermann,   Bockh,  and    Bekker  are  well 
known  for  their  services  to  classical  scholarship.    Ranke, 
Schlosser,  Leo,  Gervinus,  DMmann,  Hdusser,  von  Sybel, 
Mommsen,   Curtius,   Waitz,  are  among  the  most  distm- 
guished  German  historians.     In  imaginative  literature,  the 
Romantic  School  long  held  a  leading  place.     Its  greatest 
representatives    were  the    brothers   Schlegel,    Tteck,    and 
Hardenberg  (Novalis).      It   conferred  great    benefits  on 
Germany    by  opening    to    it    the    treasures    of   its   own 
ancient  literature.        Somewhat   different   from   the   older 
members  of  the  Romantic  School,  but  cultivating  a  similar 
spirit,  were  the  well  known  writers,  Chamisso,  de  la  Motte 
Fouqu^,  von  Arnim,  Clemens  Breniano,  and  Immermann. 
Fhiten  was   a   classicist.      Rilckert  began  his    career  as 
a  national  poet  during  the  war  of  liberation ;  but  he  after- 
wards chose  a  wide  variety  of  subjects.      Uhland  devoted 
himself   chiefly    to    ballad   and   romantic    poetry.       Pro- 
bably the  most  brilliant  poet  since  Goethe  was  Heinrich 
Heine,  the  liveliest,  wittiest,  most  sarcastic,  and  most  un-- 
scrupulous  of  all  German  writers.     Around  him  a  school 
was  formed,  called   Young  Germany,  represented,  amongst 
others,  by  Laube  and  Gutzkow.     Anastasius  Grun,  Her- 
wegh,  2sA  Frciligrath  arc  poets  more  or  less  in  sympathy 


27© 


RECENT  EVENTS, 


[CH.  XX.] 


with  this  school.  In  Genrian  as  in  English  literature, 
novels  have  taken  a  very  prominent  place  during  the 
present  century.  Giitzk(nv,  Auerbach,  Freytag,  Hackldndtr, 
Spidhagen^  and  Heys.i  are  among  the  most  successful  recent 

novelists. 

33.  German  Artists.— German  art  is  scarcely  less  rich  in 
great  names  than  German  literature  and  science.  In 
architecture  the  name  of  Schinkel  is  well  known ;  in 
sculpture,  those  of  Rauch  and  Ricischel;  in  painting,  those 
of  Overbeck,  Cornelius  and  Kaulbach,  The  chief  musical 
composers  during  the  present  century  have  been  Beethoven^ 
Weber^  Meyerbeer^  Schubert^  Mendelssohn-Bartholdy^  and 
Schumoim 


INDEX. 


Aaclien,  the  favourite  city  of  Charlet 
the  Great,  36  ;  coronations  to  take 
place  at,  105 ;  treaties  concluded 
at,  163,  177. 

Abderrhaman,  34. 

Aetius,  18,  19-        .  ,  „  , 

AdaU>ert,  Archbishop  of  Bremen,  63. 

Adelheid,  Otto  I.  marries,  50. 

Adolf,  King,  97. 

/Edui,  the,  u. 

Agilolfings,  the,  14. 

Agnes,  the  regency  of,  6a. 

Albert  I.,  98. 

Albert  II.,  113. 

Albert  the  Bear,  73* 

Albert  the  Degenerate,  97. 

Alemanni,  the,  17,  22,  23,  4»«  . 

Alfonso,  of  Castile,  elected  Kmg  « 
the  Romans,  94. 

Anastasius,  32. 

Anastasins  Grttn,  209. 

Ancient  Germany,  character  of,  3  ; 
tribes  in,  3  ;  groups  of  tnbes  m,  4  ; 
classes  of  men  in,  5  ;  villages  and 
Hundreds  in,  7  :  chiefs  in,  7  ;  the 
Comitatus  in,  7  ;  meetings  of  the 
people  in,  8 :  the  army  in,  9 ;  re- 
ligion in,  9.  ^,  •  .  _* 
Anhalt,  Bernard  of,  77  ;  Christian  of, 

Arabs,  defeat  of  the,  by  Charles 
M  artel,  39.  ,         r        i  ^ 

Archduke,  the  title  of,  confirmed  to 
the  House  of  Austria,  X14. 

Ariovistus,  11.  ,-      ,  •  u 

Aristocracy,  nse  of  a  new  Frankish, 

Arminius  13,  i4«  _ 

Army,  the,  in  ancient  Germany,  o; 
Germans  in  the  Roman,  11  ;  the 
IVussian,  reorganized,  310, six,  245. 


Amdt,  331,  MS«  . 

Amulf,  Bishop  of  ^fetz,  A 
Amulf,  King,  41 ;  crowned  Emperor, 

41. 
Astrology,  believed  m,  i6x. 
Attila,  iQ. 
Auerbacn,  270. 
Auerstadt,  battle  of,  205. 
Augsburg,  the  Diet  of,  in  1530,  138  \ 

confession,  the,  138 ;  the  rehgiou* 

peace  of,  143-  .         ,  „  ,      .     , 
Augustus  II.,  King  of  Poland,  1O7. 
Augustus  III.,  King  of  Poland,  171, 

173'  , 

Aulic  Council,  the,  i3o,  xto. 

Aurelius,  Marcus,  15. 

AusbUrger,  90. 

Austerlitz,  battle  of,  aox. 

Austrasia,  24. 

Austria,  the  Mark  of,  35;  pv«»  «> 
Leopold  I.,  54 :  made  a  duchy,  75 : 
Styria  united  to,  87  ;  falls  to  the 
house  of  Habsburg,  96 ;  wars  of; 
with  France,  163-171  :  wars  of,  with 
Prussia,  175-188,   194-218  ;  gam  of, 
by  first  partition   of  Poland,   190: 
gain  of,  by  second  and  third  parti- 
tions of  Poland,  196 ;   the  relation 
of,  to  Germany,  235 ;  the  Revolu- 
tion in,   1848-9,  «29.  233,  234  ;  di*. 
putes  between,  and  Prussia,  248; 
prepares  for  war  with  Prussia,  249  J 
war  with  Prussia,  251. 
Axel  Oxenstiem,  156,  157. 


Babenbcrg,  the  house  of,  $4,  87. 
Bach,  222.  ,      ,,  _ 

Baden,  Peace  of,  170  :  the  Margrave 

of,  made  an  Elector,  200 ;  insurrae> 

tion  in,  237. 


272 


INDEX, 


Bancr,  General,  157. 

Basel,  the  council  of,  1x3  ;  treaty  of« 
196. 

Batavians,  the,  4,  14. 

Baur,  268. 

Bavaria,  18,  23,  «4.  34.  37.  .4*.  48  ; 
taken  from  Henry  the  Lion,  77; 
made  a  kingdom,  201  ;  becjmes 
part  of  German  Empire,  265. 

Bavarian  succesiiion,  war  of  the,  %Ml. 

Beethoven,  270. 

Bekker,  269. 

Benedek,  Marshal,  25^ 

Benedict  XII.,  xoo. 

Benefices,  25. 

Berengar,  50, 

Berlichingen,  GOtr  von,  135. 

Berlin,  first  mentioned,  73 ;  Buona- 
parte in,  ao6. 

Bemadocte,  2X3,  314. 

Bernard,  Duke  of  Weimar,  157. 

Bcnha,  Henry  IV. 's  queen,  63. 

Bible,    Luther's  translation  of,   134, 

145. 
Bismarck-SchOnhausen,  345,  348,  349, 

250,  257,  258,  266. 

Blenheim,  battle  of,  X69. 

Blucher,  206,  3x1,  313,  3x6,  2x7,  3x8. 

Bdckh,  269. 

Boehm,  Jacob,  x6o. 

Bohemia,  wars  of  Charles  the  Great 
with,  36  ;  the  Duke  of,  made  King, 
75  ;  falls  to  the  house  of  Luxem- 
Durg,  98 ;  the_ doctrines  of  Wycliffe 
in,  109 ;  war  in,  no  ;  Sigmund  re- 
ceives the  crown  of,  no  ;  distur- 
bances in,  X51 ;  Frederick  V.  of  the 
Palatinate  chosen  King  of,  152 ; 
severely    punished    by    Ferdinand 

II..  152- 

Boleslaw  Chrobfy,  54. 

Bonifice,  Saint,  301. 

Bopp,  269. 

Bora,  Catherine  of,  13^ 

Boso,  Duke,  40. 

Brandenburg,  given  to  Frederick, 
Count  of  Hohenzollem,  xxx. 

Breilcnfeld,  battle  of,  156. 

Bremen,  the  seat  of  an  archbishop- 
rick,  40. 

Bructeri,  the,  3. 

Bull,  the  Golden,  xos. 

Bunsen,  269. 

BUren,  Frederick  of,  67. 

Bur^rav^',  the,  56. 

Burgundians,  the,  4,  16,  17. 

Burgundy,  84,  59,  61,  75,  84,  105, 


Csesar,  Caius  Julius,  xx. 

Cambray,  the  League  of,  X20 :  Peaot 

of,  133- 

Campo  Formio,  Peace  of,  198. 

Canossa,  humiliation  of  Henry  IV, 
at,  67. 

Carinthia,  35  ;  falls  to  the  house  of 
Austria,  106. 

Carlman,  39   30, 

Caiiimir  IV.,  King  of  Pc land,  xzS. 

Castles,  the  building  of,  55. 

Catherine  IL,  of  Russia,  xSj. 

Cerealis,  X5. 

Chamisso,  309. 

Charles  the  Great,  conquers  th« 
Saxons,  33 ;  conquers  the  Lom- 
bards, 33  ;  conquers  part  of  Spain, 
34  ;  deposes  L'le  Duke  of  Bavaria, 
34  :    conquers  the   Avars,  34  ;  hi« 

fovcmment,  35  ;  is  crowned  Roman 
Imperor,   36  ;    the    extent  of    hit 
Empire,  36  ;  his  death,  37. 

Charles  the  Bald,  37,  38,  39.  40. 

Charles  the  Fat,  the  great  Empirt 
of,  40  ;  deposed,  40. 

Charles  IV.,  elected  King,  103  : 
crowned  Emperor,  X05  ;  crowned 
King  of  Burgundy,  105  :  grants 
the  Golden  Bull,  105 ;  adds  to  his 
hereditary  lands,  106  ;  founds  the 
University  of  Prague,  xo6 ;  his 
death,  106. 

Charles  V.,  elected  King  of  the 
Romans,  127  ;  decides  to  uphold 
the  Reformation,  X31  ;  holds  the 
Diet  of  Worms,  X531,  13a  ;  his  wars 
with  Francis  I.  of  France,  X33 ; 
holds  the  Diet  of  Augsburg,  1530, 
138;  condemns  the  Lutheran  heresy, 
X33  ;  grants  the  Religious  Peace  of 
KUriiberg,  139  ;  his  expedition*  a- 
gainst  Hayraddin  Barbarossa,  139  ; 
renewed  wars  with  Francis  I.  of 
France,''i39  ;  defeats  the  .Schmal- 
kaldic  League,  X41  :  proclaims  the 
Interim,  141  :  has  to  fly  from 
Maurice  of  Saxony,  143  ;  si^ns  the 
Treaty  of  Passau,  143  ;  makes  wai 
on  Henry  II.  of  France,  143; 
abdicates,  144  ;  his  death,  144. 

Charles  VI.,  ascends  the  thror-.e,  170; 
his  Pragmatic  Sanction,  X71 ;  give* 
up  Lorraine,  171. 

Charles  VII..  176,  177, 

Charles  the  Huld,  116,  117. 

Charles,  of  Lorraine,  X65,  X76,  181X 


INDEX. 


273 


Ckatti,  the,  3  ;  defeat  of,  by  Drusus, 

13. 

Cherusci,  the,  3. 

Chiefs  in  ancient  Germany,  7. 

Childeric,  King,  20. 

Childeric  III.,  dethroned,  30. 

Chlodio,  King,  19. 

Chlodwig,  King,  20  ;  conquers  Gaul, 

81  :  causes  of  success  of,  21  ;  unites 

all  Frankish  tribes,  23  ;  lands  seized 

by,  23  ;  successors  of,  23. 
Christian  IV.,  of  Denmark,  153,  154. 
Church,  power  of  the,  43.  56. 
Circles,  Ciermany  divided  mto,  X33. 
Civilis  Claudius,  14. 
Clemens  Brentano,  269. 
Closlcrseven,  convention  o^  x8x» 
Clothair  I.,  23. 
Code,  the  Saiic,  17. 
Comitatrs,  the  7,  2a 
Condc,  General,  157. 
Confederation,  the  Swabian,  ti8  ;  the 

German,  2x9,  231,  241,   246,   350 ; 

the  North  German,  256,  257. 
Confederation  of  the  Rhine,  the,  303. 
Conrad  I  ,  45. 
Conrad    II.,   elected    King,    59;    his 

wise  government,  59;  becomes  King 

of  Burgundy,  5, ; ;  his  wars,  60 ;  his 

Edict,  61  :  his  death,  6i. 
Conrad  III.,  elected  King,  73;  war 

with  Henry  the  Proud,  73 ;  joins 

the  second  Crusade,  74. 
Conrad  IV.,  81,  82. 
Conrad,  son-in-law  of  Otto  I.,  49,  50. 
Constance,  wife  of  Henry  VI.,  78. 
Constantine,  18. 
Constaiiz,  the  council  of,  108. 
Cornelius,  270. 

Corviiuis,  Matthias,  1x5,  xx7« 
Counts,  20,  24. 
Crefeld,  battle  of,  182. 
Crcspy,  ihe  peace  of,  X39. 
Crusade,  the  second,  74 ;  the  third, 

77- 
Cumberland,  the  Duke  of,  i8x. 
Curtius,  269. 

Custums  Union,  the,  326. 
Customs  Parliament,  the,  257. 
C2;u^lau,  battle  of,  176. 


D. 


Dahlmann,  769. 
Daun,  Marshal,  180,  183,  186. 
Denmark,  Charles  the  Great  and,  36  ; 
Henry   I.   and,  47:  Otto  I.  and. 


40;  Otto  II.  and,  53;  Frederick  I. 

and,   75  ;    becomes  independent  of 

German  Kings,  84  ;  wars  with,  s^x, 

241,  247. 
De  la  Motte  Fouqu^,  269. 
Dettingen,  battle  of,  177, 
Dessau,  Leopold  of,  170. 
De  Wette,  268. 
Diet,   the,   44;    made   up   of  three 

colleges,  125  ;    made  a  permanent 

body,  160  ;  its  powerlcssness,  x6u 
Diets,  provincial,  124. 
Donauwcrth,  battle  of,  169. 
Donar,  9. 

Dresden,  peace  of,  X77. 
Drusus,  12. 

Duchies,  fall  of  the,  85. 
Duke.s,   24 ;   position  of,    as   feudal 

lords,  42. 
Durer,  Albert,  145. 
Dutch,  origin  of  word,  3 ;  High  and 

Low,  3. 


E. 


Eadgyth,  or  Edith,  wife  of  Otto  I^ 

48. 
East  Pomeratiia,  ceded  to  the  Elector 

of  Hrandenburg,  159. 
Ebroiii,  28. 

Ecclesiastical  Reser\'ation,  the,  144. 
Eidgcnossen,  the,  102,  109,  116,  i3X. 
Electors,  the  seven,  84. 
Electoral  League,  the  first,  xox. 
Elizabeth,  St.,  of  Hungary,  86. 
Elizabeth,  of  Russia,  187. 
Empire,  connexion  of  Germany  with 

the,  51,  83,  85 ;  fall  of  the,  202. 
"  Emperor  Elect,"  title  of,  taken  by 

Maximilian  I.,  122. 
*'  Emperor  of  Austria,"  203. 
England,   alliance   of    Pmssia   withu 

179  ;  alliance  of,  with  Austria  ciad 

Russia,  198,  300. 
Enke,  26(j. 
Eormennc,  16. 
Erfurt  Parliament,  the,  239. 
Ernst  August,  of  Hanover,  227. 
Ernst,  Duke,  60. 

Eugene,  Prince,  x68,  169,  170,  xji. 
Ewald,  268. 


F. 


Family,  the,  in  ancient  Germany,  & 
Favre,  M.,  366. 


374 


INDEX. 


FchrbelUn,  battle  of,  164. 

Fcmgerichte,  the,  91. 

Ferdinand  I.,  founder  of  the  Austrian 
branch  of  the  House  of  Habsburg, 
133  :  becomes  King  of  Bolieniia  and 
Hunf;r\ry,  136  ;  elected  King  of  the 
Romans,  138  ;  takes  title  of  Em- 
peror without  being  crowned  by  the 
Pope,  147. 

Ferdinand  II.,  becomes  coadjutor  to 
Matthias,  150  :  his  policy,  150,  151  ; 
crowned  Emperor,  152  ;  obtains  the 
support  of  the  Catholic  League, 
152 ;  treats  Bohemia  with  unex- 
ampled severity,  152  ;  accepts  the 
aid  of  Wallenstein,  154;  i>sues  the 
Edict  of  Restitution,  154  .  dismisses 
Wallensiein,  155;  appeals  to  him  for 
help,  155;  rewards  his  murderers, 

157  ;  death  of  Ferdinand,  157. 
Ferdinand  III.,  157. 

Ferdinand,  Emperor  of  Austria,  227, 

234- 
Ferdinand,  Duke  of  Brunswick,  194, 

905. 
Feudalism  in  Germany,  25,  42. 
Fink,  svirrender  of,  185. 
Flemming,  Paul,  161. 
Fleurus,  battle  of,  195. 
Fontenay,  the  battle  of,  38. 
France,    Burgundy    and,    84,     117  ; 

Charles    V.    and,     133,     139.     M3  ; 

gains  by  the  Peace  of  Westphalia, 

158  ;    wars  with,  163-171,  176-177, 
179-188,  194-218,  257-266. 

Francia,  East,  41. 

Francis  I.,  129,  133,  177. 

Francis  II.,  194  ;  resigns  the  Imperial 
crown,  202. 

Francis  I.  of  Austria,  227. 

Francis  Joseph,  Emperor  of  Austria, 
234  ,  summons  Congress  of  princes, 
346. 

Frankfurt,  election  of  Emperors  at, 
105 ;  riot  at,  in  1833,  226 ;  the 
provisional  Parliament  in,  230  ;  the 
National  Assembly  in,  230,  232, 
233.  235,  236  ;  the  Peace  of,  266. 

Franks,  the.  17,  18-24  ;  Dukes  of  the, 
29  ;  separation  of  East  and  West,  41* 

Franz  von  Sickingen,  134. 

Frederick  I.  ( Barbarossa),  elected 
King,  75  ;  his  expeditions  to  Italy, 
75 ;  makes  his  vassal  Kings  do 
homage,  75  ;  becomes  King  of  Bur- 
gundy, 75  ;  his  home  government, 
76  ;  takes  Bavaria  from  Henry  the 
Lion,    76 :    divides    Saxony,    77  ; 


joins   the  third  Cnisadc,   77 ;   his 
death,  77  ;  legend  regarding,  77. 
Frederick    II.,   crowned    King,    80; 
his  character,  80  ;  absence  of,  from 
Germany,  80  ;  rebellion  of  his  son 
Henry,  80;    marries  Isabella,  81  ; 
sets  up  an  Imperial  Tribunal,  Sx  ; 
his  struggle  w^ih  the  Papacy,  81  ; 
his  death,  82. 
Frederick  the  Fair,  99. 
Frederi(.k  III.,  sides  with  the  Pope 
against  the  Council  of  Easel  and 
the    princes,     113  ;    concludes    the 
Concordat  of  Vienna,  114  :  confirms 
to  the  house  of  Austria  the  title  of 
Archduke,  114;  fails  to  obtain  the 
Bohemian  and  Hungarian  crowns, 
113  ;  difficulties  with  his  Austrian 
subjects,     116;     his     relations    to 
Charles  the  Bold,  117  ;  driven  from 
Austria  by  Matthias  Corvinus,  117  ; 
his  death,  118. 
Frederick  I.,  of  Prussia,  167,  173. 
Frederick   II.,  of  Prussia,  youth  of, 
174  ;   enters  on   the    First   Silesian 
war,    175  ;    carries  on  the  Second 
Silesian   war,    177  ;    acknowledges 
Francis    I.,   177;    his    life    during 
years  of  peace,   17S  ;  concludes  an 
alliance  with  England,  178  :  begins 
the    Seven   Years"   War,   179  ;    his 
victories  and  defeats,  179-188  ;  his 
alliance    with   the    Russi.ans,    187 ; 
concludes   the  peace  of  Hiibcrtus- 
burg,   1S9 :  his  home  government, 
109 ;   takes  part  in   the  first  p.nrti- 
tion  of  Poland,  190  :  sides  against 
Joseph   II.,  190:    forms  a   League 
to  preserve  the  Imperi.al  constitu- 
tion, iQi  :  his  death,  191. 
Frederick  William  1.,  of  Prussia,  174. 
Frederick   William    II.,   of    Prussia, 

191,  194,  204. 
Frederick  William  III.,  of  Prussia, 
ascends  the  throne,  204  :  his  aitny 
defeated  at  Jena,  005  ;  appeals  to 
the  youth  of  Prussia,  211:  con- 
cludes an  alliance  with  the  Emperor 
of  Russia,  211  :  enters  Leipzig,  21^; 
sets  up  provincial  Diets,  224  ;  hrs 
death,  227. 
Frederick  William  IV.,  of  Pnissii, 
high  expectations  with  regaru  to, 
928  ;  suiiimons  a  united  Diet,  228! 
his  conduct  in  the  disturbances  at 
Berlin,  230  ;  refuses  the  title  of 
Emperor,  256  ;  sets  up  constitu- 
tional government,  238  •  form.^  th* 


INDEX, 


»7S 


"  German  Union,"  239  ;  agp^es  to 
the  restoration  of  the  Diet,  241;  his 
death,  245. 

Frederick  V,,  of  the  Palatin.ite,  be- 
comes King  of  Bohemia.  .152  ;  his 
army  defeated,  152  ;  his  flight,  152. 

Frederick  of  the  Rhenish  Palatinate, 
war  against,  115. 

Frederick,  Elector  of  Saxony,  133. 

Freemen,  in  ancient  Germany,  5  ;  de- 
crease of  numbers  of,  42. 

Free  towns,  decay  of,  163. 

Freiligrath,  269. 

French  Revolution,  the,  193, 

Fre>l.ig,  270. 

Friends  of  Light,  228. 

Frisians,  the,  17,  29,  jow 


o. 

Gasteln,  Convention  of,  i^lL 

Gaus,  7. 

Gauss,  260. 

Gefolge,  tne,  7,  20,  26. 

Gellcrt,  220. 

George  I.,  of  England,  167. 

George  II.,  of  England,  177. 

Gerljert,  54. 

Gerhardt,  Paul,  161. 

German,  origin  of  word,  a. 

Germans,  relations  of,  to  surrounding 

peoples,    2  ;    High    and    Low,   2 ; 

character   of,  in  r.ncicnt  times,  5  ; 

classes  of  ancient,   5 ;    conversion 

of,  30. 
German  Catholics,  228. 
German  Empire,  coui>titutioa  of  the, 

267. 
Gcrmanicus,  13. 
Gilds,  57,  8g,  125. 
Gh'belins   74. 
Gneiscnau,  210. 
Goethe,  221. 

Gorgey,  General,  237,  238. 
Goths,  the,  4.  16,  18;  the  East,  z6; 

the  West,  16. 
Gothic  arcliitecture,  92. 
Granson,  battle  of,  116. 
Graudenz,  Courbiere  in,  206. 
Great  German  party,  the,  235,  244. 
Great  Elector,  the,  163,  164. 
Gregory  VII..  65,  66. 
G^im,  the  brothers,  227,  269. 
Gudnin,  93. 
Gustavus  Adolphus,  comes  to  the  aid 

of   the    Protestants,     155  ;    defeats 

Tilly  at   Breitcnfeld,    156 ;    enten 


Munich  in  triumph,   156 ;  tries  to 
force    Wallcnstein    to  an    engage- 
ment, 156  ;  is  killed,  156 
Gutzkow,  269,  270. 

H. 

Habsburg,  the  Counts  of,  87;  the 
house  of,  receives  Austria,  96 ; 
receives  Carinthia,  106 ;  receives 
Tyrol,  106;  Austrian  and  Spanish 
branches* of  the  house  of.  133 J 
extinction  of  the  male  line  of  the 
house  of,  171. 

Hacklander,  270. 

Haeckel,  269. 

Hamburg,  burned  by  the  Northmen, 
40. 

Hiindel,  222. 

Hanno,  Archbishop  of  K5ln,  62. 

Hanover,  seized  03'  Buonaparte,  200; 
overrun  by  the  Prussians,  25a ; 
annexed  to  Prussia,  255. 

Hansa,  the,  89,  125,  158. 

Hans  Sachs,  145. 

Harold  Blue  Tooth,  49. 

Haugwitz,  210. 

Hiiusser,  269. 

Haydn,  222. 

Hayraddin  Barbarossa,  139. 

Hegel,  220,  268. 

Heidelberg,  castle  of,  destroyed,  166 

Heine,  Heinrich,  269. 

Heliand,  the,  44. 

Helmholtz,  269. 

Henr>'  I.,  elected  King,  46  ;  defeats 
the  Hungarians,  46  ;  seizes  Lothar- 
ingia,  47  ;  builils  towns,  47. 

Henry  II.,  54;  his  war  with  Boles- 
law  Chrobry,  54;  his  kindness  to 
the  Church,  55. 

Henry  111.,  increases  the  royal  power. 
61  ;  proclaims  a  General  Peace,  6i ; 
defeats  the  Hungarians,  62  ;  de- 
poses and  creates  Popes,  6a ;  his 
death,  62. 

Henry  IV.,  his  youth,  63  ;  offends  the 
Saxons,  63;  his  war  with  the  S.axor.s, 
64  ;  his  quarrel  with  Gregory  VII., 
65;    humbled    by    Gregoiy   VII. , 

66  ;  his  war  with  Rudolf  of  Swahia, 

67  :  the  Saxons  submit  to  him,  6S  ; 
rebellion  of  his  sons,  63  ;  his  deaili, 
68. 

Henry  V.,  struggle  of,  with  the 
Papacy,  6");  concludes  the  Con- 
cordat of  Worms,  69  :  his  diihcultSM 
in  Germany,  69. 


376 


INDEX, 


Henry  VI.,   his   cfTorts    to  conquer 

Sicily,  78;    Richard  I.  of  England 

and.  73  ;    tries  10  uuike  the  crown 

hereditary,  79. 
Henry  VII.,  elected  King,  98 :  secures 

Bohemia  for  his  son,  08  ;  becomes 

Ernpcror.  09  :  his  death,  99. 
Heuiy  iht;  Wrangler,  52. 
Henry  the  Proud,  70,  73. 
Henry  the  Lion,  73,  74,  76.  77* 
Henry  Raspe,  82.  ^ 

Henry,  Prince  of  Prvissia,  187,  188. 
llenry  II.,  of  France,  142,  Mi- 
HcMvy  VIII.,  of  England,  lao,  13^ 
Herder,  221. 
Hermann  Uillung,  49. 
Hcrni.inn,  269. 
Henninones,  the,  4,  18. 
Herstall,  Pippin  of,  28. 
Herwegh,  269. 

Herzog,  the,  9;      .       _       .  . 

Hessen  -  Cassel,  the  Landgrave  of, 
made  an  Elector,  200  ;  dispute  be- 
tween Elector  of,  and  Chambers, 
340  :  overrun  by  the  Prussians,  252; 
annexed  to  Prussia,  255. 
Heyse,  270. 

Hcxhe,  General,  105. 

Hochkirchen,  battle  of,  18a. 

Ilo'er,  209. 

Holienlinden,  battle  of,  199. 

lluhenzoUern,  the  Cou     s  of,  87  :  the 
house  of,    receives    Brandenburg, 

III. 

Holbein,  Hans.  145. 

Holy  League,  the,  120. 

Horn,  General,  157. 

Hroswilha,  57. 

Hubert usburg.  Pence  of,  iS3. 

Humanists,  the,  126,  130. 

Humboldt,  Wilhelni  von,  210. 

Humboldt,  Alexander  von,  268. 

Hundreds,  7.  •  ,    ,       • 

Hungarians,  wars  of  the,  with  Lewis 
the  Child,  41  :  defeated  by  Henry 
I.,  47:  defeated  by  Otto  L,  50; 
defeated  by  Henry  1 1 1.,  61. 

Hungary,  shakes  off  allegiance  to  tiie 
German  Kings,  84  :  Ferdinand  I. 
becomes  King  of,  136  ;  rebellion  of, 
against  Leopold  I.,  163;  crown  of, 
niade  hereditary,  166  ;  revolt  of, 
against  Joseph  II.,  192;  Revolu- 
tion in,  1848-9,  214,  237,  238. 

Huniades,  John,  115. 

Huns,  the,  16. 

Huss,  John,  109,  no. 
Hussite  War,  the,  st» 


I. 


Immermann,  269. 

Imperial  Chamber,  the,  IS^ 

Ingaevones,  the,  4,  18. 

Inheritance,  laws  of,  87. 

Innocent  II  I.,  79. 

Innocent  iV.,  81. 

Innocent  X.,  158. 

International  Law,  i6ow 

Interim,  the,  14X. 

Interregnum,  the.  94. 

Iruunsul,  dcstro\ed.  33. 

Isabella,  sister  of  Henry  TIT.  of  Engw 

land,  81. 
Istacvoncs,  the.  4,  18. 
Italy,  partial  union  of,  244  J  ail>auc« 

between  Prussia  and,  250. 


J. 

James  I.,  of  England,  15a,  i$j. 

Jemmappes,  battle  of,  194. 

Jena,  battle  of,  205. 

JtUathich,  of  Croatia,  25. 

Jerome,  of  Prague,  iicx 

Jesuits,  the,  147. 

Jews,  persecution  of  the,  105. 

Joanna,  the  Infanta,  1x9. 

John  XXII. ,  joo. 

John  XXIII.,  loS,  109. 

John,  King  of  Dohcmia.  98. 

John,  Elector  of  Saxony,   134,  138. 

John,  Waiwode  of  Transsilvania,  136. 

John  Frederick,  Elector  of  Saxony, 

John,  of  Austria,  elected  head  of 
the  Provincial  CcuiialGovermacnt, 

Joseph  I.,  169,  170. 

Joseph  II.,  elected  Emperor,  189; 
his  government  of  his  hereditary 
doniunoas,  190,  191  :  failure  of  hi« 
schemes,  19^  :  his  death,  192. 

Jourdan,  General,  195,  197,  198* 

Juban,  18,  19. 

Julich-Clevc,  149,  163. 


Kaiscr«.lautcm,  195,  19<^  ^ 

Kant.  220. 

Karolingia,  38. 

Karolin-ian  Empire,  extent  of  the, 

under  Charles  the  Great,  36  ;  broken 

up,  4Ck. 


INDEX, 


*77 


Katzhach,  battle  of  the,  213. 

Kaulbach,  270. 

Keith,  Marshal,  182. 

Kelpcr,  John,  160. 

*'  King  of  the  Romans,"  55,  78,  94. 

"King  of  Germany,"  title  of,  taken 
by  Klaximilian  I.,  122. 

Kings,  in  ancient  Germany,  7 ;  posi- 
tion of  the  feudal  German,  43  ;  re- 
venue of  the  German,  44  ;  loss  of 
power  by  the  German,  70,  83,  145  ; 
the  German,  and  their  hereditary 
lands,  102  ;  position  of  the  German, 
in  consequence  of  g^eat  hereditary 
possessions,  124. 

Kirchhofl",  269. 

Klopstock,  220. 

Knighthood.  88. 

Kdln,  cathedral  of,  92,  227. 

KOniggriitz,  battle  of,  253,  254. 

KOnigsberg,  founded,  83. 

KOmer,  221. 

Kosciuszko,  196. 

Kotzebue,  225. 

Kranach,  Lucas,  145. 

Kunersdorf,  battle  of,  184* 


Ladislaus,  son  of  Albert  II.,  115. 

Landsturm,  the,  211. 

Landwehr,  the  Prussian,  aiz ;  the 
Austrian,  207. 

Landen,  Pippin  of,  28. 

Laube,  269. 

League,  the  Rhenish,  89 :  the  Han- 
•eatic,  89,  125,  158 ;  the  old,  of 
High  Germany,  103  ;  the  Swabian, 
107  ;  the  Catholic,  149. 

Learning,  under  the  Ottos,  57;  re- 
vival of,  126. 

Leibnitz,  220. 

Leipzig,  battle  o^  3x3. 

Leo,  269. 

Leo  X.,  129 ;  his  Bull  burned,  x^i. 

Leoben,  preliminaries  of  Peace  signed 
at,  198. 

Leopold  I.,  wars  of,  with  Lewis  XIV., 
164,  166,  168,  169 ;  consents  to  re- 
cognise Frederick  I.  as  King  of 
Prussia,  167. 

Leopold  II.,  192,  194. 

Lessing,  sax. 

Leszczynski,  17X. 

Letter  of  Majesty,  the,  149. 

Leuthen,  battle  of,  182. 

Lewis  the  German,  37,  38,  39,  4a 


Lewis  the  Pious,  cro\vned  during  his 
father's  lifetime,  37  ;  afterwards 
crowned  by  Pope  Stephen  III.,  37  ; 
rebellions  of  his  sons,  37. 

Lewis  the  Child,  41  ;  pays  tribute  to 
the  Hungarians,  42. 

Lewis  IV.,  war  of,  with  Frederick 
the  F'air,  99 ;  quarrel  with  Poj>e 
John  XXlI/,  100;  becomes  sole 
King,  and  Is  crowned  Emperor, 
100;  Is  supported  by  his  subjects 
against  the  Popes,  100  :  offends  th^ 
princes,  loi  ;  his  death,  102. 

Lewis  I.,  of  Bavaria,  226. 

Lewis  II.,  of  Bavaria,  265. 

Lewis  XIV.,  of  France,  makes  war  on 
the  United  Provinces,  163  ;  wars  of, 
with  Leopold  I.,  1G4,  166,  16S,  169 
seizes  Strassburg,  164  ;  stirs  up 
the  Hungarians  and  Turks  against 
Leopold  1.,  165. 

Liebig,  269. 

Liegnitz,  battle  of,  186. 

LIti,  the,  5. 

Lodi,  battle  of,  197. 

Lombard  cities,  Frederick  I.  and  the, 
75  ;  Frederick  II.  and  the,  80. 

Lombards,  4,  17 ;  conquest  of,  by 
Charles  the  Great,  33  ;  Charles  the 
Great  becomes  King  of  the,  34 ; 
Otto  I.  becomes  King  of  the,  50. 

Lorraine,  district  in,  seized  by  Henry 
II.  of  France,  142;  given  up  by 
Charles  VI.,  171. 

Lothar,  the  Emperor,  37,  38,  70. 

Lotharingia,  38  ;  seized  by  Henry  I., 
47  ;  divided  into  two  Duchies,  58. 

Loudon,  Marshal,  183,  186,  187. 

Lowositz,  battle  of,  179. 

Luneville,  peace  of,  199. 

Luther,  Martin,  opposes  Tetzel,  129  ; 
his  thesis,  129  ;  is  excommunicated, 
X31  ;  bums  the  Pope's  Bull,  131  : 
appears  before  the  Diet  of  Wormi 
132  ;  his  stay  at  the  Wartburg,  133 
his  marriage,  134  ;  his  controversy 
with  Zwingli,  137  ;  his  death,  141. 

Ldtzen,  the  battle  of,  156. 

Luxemburg,  Emperors  of  the  house 
of,  98,  104-1X1;  France  desires  to 
purchase,  256. 


M. 

Mack,  surrender,  of,  sot. 
Magdeburg,  archblshoprick   of,    49  f 
the  sack  of,  155. 


178 


ii:dex. 


Mainz,  the  sec  of,  30,   43,  56,  2cx5 ; 
given   to   Lewis   the   German,  38 ; 
the  Frenth  in,  195. 
Malplaquet,  battle  of,  17a 
Mann  us,  5. 

Mansfeld,  Count,  151,  153,  154. 
Marcomanni,  the,  4,  la,  15,  18. 
Marcumannic  War,  the,  15. 
Marchfield,  the,  24. 
Margaret  Maultasch,  loi,  10& 
Margraves,  35. 
Margraves'  War,  the,  115. 
Marengo,  battle  of,  199 
Maria  Theresa,   pragmatic   sanction 
in  favour  of,  171  ;  claims  of,  to  the 
Austrian  inheritance,  disputed,  173; 
appeals  to  Hungary,  176 ;  concludes 
peace  with  Frederick  II.,  176,  177  ; 
her  regret  for  the   loss  of  Silesia, 
178 ;  conduct  of  her  troops  during 
the    Seven   Years'   War,    179-188 ; 
her  death,  190. 
Marlborough,  the  Duke  of,  169,  170. 
Maroboduus,  14. 
Marsi,  the,  3  ;  defeated  by  Gcrmaiii- 

cus,  13. 
Martel,  Charles,  29. 
Martin,  cousin  of  Pippin  of  Hcrstall, 

28. 
Mary,  daughter  of  Charles  the  Bold, 

117. 
Matricula,  the,  131. 
Matthias,  acknowledged  as  head  of 
the  house  of  Austria,  148  ;  crowned 
Emperor,  150 ;  his  feeble  govern- 
ment, 150. 
Maurice,  Duke  of  Saxony,  140,  143, 

X43. 
Maximilian    I.,    marriage    of,    with 
Mary,  117  ;  power  of,  118  ;  obtains 
Joanna  as  a  wife  for  his  son  Philip, 
119  ;  holds  a  Diet  at  Worms,  1495, 
119  ;  sets  up  the  Imperial  Chamber, 
119  ;  joins  the  League  of  Cambray, 
lao;  helps  the  Holy  League,  120  ; 
serves  under  Henry  VIII.  at  Ter- 
ouenne,   120 ;    makes  war  on    the 
Swiss  League,  121  :  carries  on  the 
war  of  the  Bavarian  succession,  121 ; 
takes  the  titles  of  "  Emperor  Elect " 
and    "  King  of   Germany,  "    laa  ; 
divides  Germany  into  Circles,  123  ; 
sets  up  the  Aulic  Council,  122  ;  his 
death,  123. 
Maximilian  II.,  147. 
Maximilian,  Duke  of  Bavaria,  149, 153. 
Maximilian,    Emmanuel,  Elector    of 
Bavaiia,  169. 


Mayer,  269. 

Mendelssohn-Bartholdy,  270. 
Melanchthon,  134,  138. 
Merowig,  King.  20. 
Merowingians,  character  of  the,  24 ; 
household  of  the,  25 ;  dethroned, 

Mcttemlch,  Prince,  212,  224. 

Met7,  seized  by  Henry  II.  of  France 

142  ;  surrender  of,  263. 
Meyerbeer,  270. 
Middle  Ages,  end  of  the,  xas. 
Minden,  battles  of,  14,  183. 
Minnesiinger,  the,  92. 
Missi  Dominici,  35. 
Moguls,  the,  81. 
Moltke,  Von,  252,  260,  263. 
Molwitz,  battle  of,  175. 
Mommsen,  269. 
Montccuculi,  General,  164. 
Morat,  the  battle  of,  116. 
Moreau,  197. 

Morgarten  Pass,  battle  of,  103. 
Mozart,  222. 

Miihlberg,  battle  of,  141. 
MUller,  269. 
M filler,  K.  O.,  269. 
Munich,  founded  by  Henry  the  Lion, 

76  ;  Gustavus  Adijlphus  at,  156. 
Murat,  Joachim,  202. 
Music,  in  Germany,  222,  37a 


N. 

Nafels,  battle  of,  107. 

Napoleon  Ijuonaparte,  first  victoriet 
of,  197 ;  forces  Austria  to  accept 
the  peace  of  Campo  Formio,  198  ; 
his  campaign  in  Italy,  1800,  i^  ; 
his  contemptuous  treatment  of  Ger- 
many, 200;  defeats  the  allies,  1805, 
201  ;  forms  the  confederation  of  the 
Rhine,  202  ;  his  war  with  Prussia, 
304-207 ;  his  war  with  Austria, 
1809,  208  ;  his  war  with  Prussia, 
Russia,  Austria,  and  Sweden,  211- 
ai6;  his  escape  from  Elba,  217: 
his  final  defeat,  218. 

Napoleon  III.,  declare.5  war  with 
Prussia,  258 ;  surrenders  to  tho 
King  of  Prussia,  262. 

National  Union,  the,  244. 

National  Liberal  party,  the,  357. 

Neander,  26S. 

Neerwinden,  battle  of,  19s* 

Nero,  14. 

Netherlands,    the  house  of   Aus/Jl* 


INDEX, 


2^9 


leceives  the,  117;  Charles  V.  r?<;igns 
the,  to  Philp,  144  ;  Austria  receives 
the  Spanish,  170;  revolt  of  the, 
against  Joseph  II.,  192:  Austria 
cedes  the,  to  France,  198,  199. 

Keustria,  24. 

Nibeliingenlied,  the,  93. 

Nicholas  V.,  100. 

Niebiihr,  230. 

Nobles,  in  ancient  Germany,  5  ; 
feudal,  42  ;  the  lower  class  of,  70 ; 
increase  of  immcdiaie,  85. 

Noble  houses,  leading,  06. 

N  or  I  h  men,  depredations  by  the,  38  ; 
burn  Hamburg,  40 ;  deteated  by 
Arnulf,  41. 

North    German  Confederation,  the, 

256.  .257- 
Novalis,  269. 
Ndrnberg,   the   Religious   peace  of, 

O. 

Oken,  269. 

Opitz,  Martin,  160. 

Otto  I.,  civil  wars  under,  48,  50;  in- 
crease"; bis  power,  49  ;  his  wars,  49  ; 
first  visit  to  Italy,  50:  marries 
Queen  Adelheid.  50  ;  becomes  King 
of  the  Lombards,  50 :  second  visit 
to  Italy,  51  ;  is  ciowned  Emperor, 
51 ;  his  death,  sj. 

Otto  II.,  crowned  Emperor,  52  ; 
marries  Theophanfl,  52  ;  inarches 
to  Paris,  53  ;  goes  to  Italy,  53;  his 
death,  53. 

Otto  III.,  54. 

Otto  IV.,  79. 

Otto  of  Nordheim,  64,  65. 

Ottocar,  King  of  Bohemia,  83,  87,  95. 

OuJenarde,  battle  of,  170* 

Overbeck,  370. 


Palace,  Mayors  of  the,  «6,  28. 

iVilatinate,  overrun  by  French  troops, 
166. 

Palsqrave*;,  26,  35  :  provincial,  52. 

Papacy,  Hcniy  III.  and  the,  62; 
Henry  IV.  and  the,  65,  C6,  67.  63  : 
Henry  V.  and  the,  6q  ;  Loihar  and 
the,  70;  Frederick  I.  and  the,  75, 
76  ;  Kings  Philip  ind  Otto  and  the, 
79  ;  Frederick  II.  and  the,  80,  81  ; 
Le«ris  IV.  and  the,  too,  loi. 


Paris,  attacked  by  the  Nonhmen,  39; 

Peace  of,  i38  ;  first  Peace  of,  216; 

second  Peace  of,  218  ;  besieged,  53, 

263. 
Partition   of  Poland,   the   first,   189; 

the  second,  196  ;  the  third,  196. 
Paschal  II.,  69. 
Passarowitz,  Peace  of,  171. 
Passau,  Treaty  of,  143. 
Patricians,  the,  56,  125. 
Pavia,  battle  of,  133. 
Peace,  General,  proclaimed  by  Henry 

III.,  61  ;   proclaimed  by  the  Diet. 

n8,  119. 
Peasantry,  the,  43,  125 ;  war  of  the, 

135- 
People,  Literature  of  the,  126. 

Peter  III.,  of  Russia,  187. 

Pfahlbiirger,  90. 

Philip,  King.  79. 

Philip,  son  of  Maximilian  I.,  119. 

P.ilil),  Charles  V.'s  son,  142,  144. 

Philip.    Landgrave  of    Hessen,   134. 

135,  MI- 
Pu  licgru,  Gener.il,  195. 
Pippin,  of  Laiiden,  28  ;  of  Herstall, 

23. 

Pippin  the  Short,  29 ;  becomes  King 
of  the  Franks,  30;  defeats  the 
Lombards,  32;  is  made  Patrician, 
32. 

Pisa,  the  Council  of,  108. 

Pius  VI.,  191. 

Plague,  the,  105. 

Platen,  269. 

Podiebrad,  George,  115,  It6. 

Poland,  submission  of,  to  German 
Kings,  49,  55,  60,  75;  throws  off 
allegiance  to  the  German  Kings, 
84:  the  Teutonic  Order  and,  118: 
Prussia  independent  of,  163  :  parti- 
tions of,  189,  i';6.  _ 

Pope,  the  German  Kings  and  the,  85. 

"  Potato  War,"  the,  190. 

Pott,  269.  _ 

pragmatic  Sanction,  in  favour  of 
Maria  Theresa,  171. 

Prague,  the  University  of,  106,  xtn) : 
Peace  of,  255. 

Pressburg,  Peace  of,  201.     _ 

Princes,  secular,  55:  spiritual,  56; 
independence  of  the,  55,  70,  83,  114 
124,  144.  159.  163. 

Private  War,  43,  56. 

Protestants,  the  Lutherans  are  caUed, 

Prussia,  conquest  of,  83 :  western 
part  of,  ceded  to  Casimix  IV.,  »i8J 


s8o 


INDEX. 


Albert  of  Brandenburg  becomes 
Duke  of,  136  ;  Duchy  of,  joined  to 
Electorate  of  Brandenburg,  149; 
the  Elector  of  Brandenburg  be- 
comes King  of,  167  ;  effect  of  Seven 
Years'  War  on  the  position  of,  188, 
x8q;  gain  of,  by  first  partition  of 
Poland,  190;  gain  of,  by  second 
and  third  partitions  of  Poland,  '96  ; 

1'oins  Austria  against  France,  194  ; 
lumiliatcd  by  France,  205-207 : 
war  with  France,  a  10-2 18  :  religious 
movements  m,  228  ;  the  Revolution 
in,  1848-9,  229,  230,  233,  238 ;  the 
National  Assembly  of,  233  ;  consti- 
tutional government  in,  238  ;  re- 
lations of,  to  Austria  and  the 
German  Confederation,  245  ;  dis- 
putes between  Austria  and,  248  ; 
prepares  for  war  with  Austria,  249 ; 
war  with  Austria,  251;  annexation* 
to,  1866,  255  ;  France  declares  war 
against,  258. 


Quadi,  the,  4. 

Quaue  Bras,  batik  o<,  ssf. 


Ranke,  269. 

Rastatt,    Peace    of,    170;    congress 

opened  at,  19S. 
Rauch,  270. 
Reformation,  beginnings  of  the,  129  ; 

causes  of  the,  130;  Charles  V.  and 

the,  131 ;  progress  of  the,  133  ;  in 

Switzerland,  137 ;  political  effecu 

of  the,  144. 
Renaissance  Architecture,  145. 
Restitution,  the  Edict  of,  154. 
Revolution,  in  1830,  236 ;  in  1848-9, 

22S-241. 
Rlienish  Bavaria,  insurrection  in,  237. 
Richard,    Karl  of  Cornwall,   elected 

King  of  the  Romans,  94. 
Richard  I.   of  England,  and  Henry 

VI.,  78. 
Richelieu,  CarduuJ,  \\f, 
Richter,  221. 
Rietschel,  270. 
Ripuarians,  the,  18. 
Ritter,  269. 

Roman  law,  in  Germany,  its* 
Romantic  School,  the,  969. 


Romanesque,  architecture,  57. 

Rossbach,  battle  of,  181. 

Riickert,  269. 

Riidiger,  Count,  165. 

Rudolf,  of  Swabia,  67. 

Rudolf,  of  Habsburg,  elected  King. 
95  ;  his  war  with  Uttocar,  King  ol 
Bohemia,  95  ;  secures  Austria  and 
the  sister  Duchies  for  his  family, 
9^  ;  liis  government,  96 ;  his  death, 

97- 
Rudolf  II.,  14S,  149.  »5o- 
Rudolf  III.,  of  Burgundy,  S9> 
Rugii,  the,  4. 
Rupert,  King,  107. 
Ryswick,  peace  of,  166. 


& 

Sachsen-Wittemberg,  given  to  tha 
Margrave  of  Meissen,  iix. 

Sachsenspiegel,  the,  90. 

Sackville,  Lord  George,  133. 

Salians,  the,  17. 

Salic  Code,  the,  19, 

Sakburg,  the  bishoprick  of,  made  an 
archbishoprick,  34. 

Sans  Souci,  177. 

Saxons,  the,  17  :  conquered  bv 
Charles  the  Great,  33  ;  Henry  IV, 
offends  the,  63  ;  wars  of,  with 
Henry  IV.,  64,  67  ;  submission  of 
the,  toHsnry  IV.,  68. 

Saxony,  41  :  taken  from  Henry  the 
Lion,  77  ;  made  a  kingdom,  201  : 
disturbances  in,  236 ;  overrun  by 
the  Prussians,  252. 

Save,  Marshal,  177. 

Scharnhorst,  210. 

SchcUing,  aao. 

Schiller,  221. 

Schinkel,  270. 

Scl\legt:l,  269. 

Schlelermacner,  268. 

Schleswig-Holstein,  231,  241,  24a,  246, 
248. 

Schlij>ser,  269. 

Schin.-ilkaldic  League,  formed,  138; 
defeated,  141. 

Schcinbrunn,  battle  of,  208. 

Schubert,  270. 

Schumann,  270. 

Schwabenspiegel,  the,  90. 

Schwartzcnl)erg,  Prince,  Pta. 

Schwerin,  Marshal,  176,  tSo. 

Schwyz,  102. 

Sedan,  battl*  of. 


INDEX, 


aSi 


Seidlitz,  General,  z8z. 

Semnones,  the,  4. 

Sempach,  battle  of,  107. 

Sequani,  the,  xi. 

Serfs,  43 ;  the  freeing  of,  90. 

Seven  Years'  War,  the,  x79-x88. 

Sicimbri.  the,  3.  ... 

Sicily,  Henry  VL  and  the  kmgdom 

of,  78. 
Sigmund,  elected  King,  xo8  :  at  the 
Council  of  Constanz,  108 ;  war 
with  Bohemia,  xio :  receives  the 
crown  of  Bohemia,  xix  :  his  death, 
nx. 
Silcsian  School,  the  first,   161 ;    the 

second,  220. 
Silesian    War,    the    first,   175;    the 

second,  X77. 
Slaves,  in  ancient  Germany,  5. 
Slavonic  lands,  conquest  of,  83. 
Sobieski,  John,  165. 
Sp.inish  Succession,  war  of  the,  x68. 
Spielhagen,  27a 
Stein,  210. 

Strassburg,  scired  by  Lewis  XIV., 164. 
Strauss,  268. 
Suevi,  the,  4- 

Suleyman,  the  Sultan,  136,  139. 
Swabia,  41,  48.    . 
Sweden,  concession*  to,  by  Peace  ot 

Westphalia,  159-      , ,,     ....      , 
Swiss  League,  the,  and  Maximilian  I., 

X2I. 

Switzerland,  the  Reformation  m,  137  ; 

independence    of,    acknowledged, 

159. 
Sword,  the  Knights  of  the,  83. 


T. 


T.iborites,  the.  iix. 

Tencteri,  the,  3. 

Testri,  battle  of,  28. 

Tetzel,  John,  129. 

Teutonic  Kingdom,  the,  38. 

Teutonic  Ord^r,  the,  con<iucrs  Prussia 
83;  defeaiwd  by  Jagellon,  Ji8; 
cedes  to  Casimir  IV.  the  western 
part  of  Prussia,  and  does  homage 
for  the  rest,  n8  ;  comes  to  an  end 
as  a  sovereign  power,  136. 

rhassilo,  34. 

Theudebert,  23. 

Theodoric,  the  Great,  17,  18. 

Theodoric,  son  of  Chlodwig,  tj. 

Thcophan3,  52,  53,  57. 

Thiers,  M.,  966. 


Thorn,  Peace  of,  1x8. 

Thuisto,  5. 

Thuringia,  x8,  41,  64,  86. 

Thurn,  Count,  151. 

Thusnelda,  X3. 

Tiberius,  la. 

Tieck,  269. 

Tilly,  Count,  152,  153,  154,  X5S.  iS^- 

Tilsit,  peace  of,  207. 

Torgau,  battle  of,  186. 

Torstenson,  General,  157. 

Towns,  the  building  of,  in  time  of 
Henry  I.,  47  I  growth  of,  56  :  Free 
Iinperiaf,  89,  125  ;  Leagues  of,  89. 

Trent,  Council  of,  147. 

Tribes,  ancient,  3  ;  group*  of,  4,  17  • 
wanderings  of,  16. 

Tribur,  Assembly  held  at,  40. 

Truce  of  God,  the,  71. 

Tyrol,  falls  to  the  house  of  Austria, 
106. 

Tyrolese,  loyalty  of  the,  209, 

Turenne,  157,  164. 

Turks,  threaten  Germany,  XX4:  diivcn 
back  by  the  Hungarians,  X15  ;  the, 
in  Maximilian  I.'s  lime,  X2i  ;  in- 
vasion of  Austria  by  the,  165. 


U. 

Ubii,  the,  4. 

Uhland,  269. 

Uirich,  Duke  of  Wurtemberg,  140. 

Ulrich  von  Hutten,  X26,  130,  135. 

Universities  ol  Germany.  126. 

United  Diet,  at  Berlin,  228. 

Union,  the  Protestant,  149;  the  Ger- 
man, 238. 

United  Provinces,  independence  ol 
the,  acknowledged,  159 :  war  of  the, 
with  Lewis  XIV.,  163. 

Usipetes,  the,  3. 

Utraquists,  the,  iix. 


V. 


Vandals,  thr,  4,  16. 
Varus,  Quinctilius,  X2,  X3. 
Vellcda,  14. 

Verdun,  the  treaty  of,  38. 
Vienna,  declared  the  capital,  98  :  the 
Concordat  of,  114 ;  Congress  o£.  216 
Villages,  in  ancient  Germany,  7. 
Voltaire,  178. 
Von  Amim,  369. 
Voo  Sybel,  369. 


)82 


INDEX, 


w. 


Waj^m,  battle  of, 

Waiblings,  74. 

Waitz,  26^ 

Wallenstein,  Albert  von,  raises  an 
army,  154  ;  defeau  the  Protestant 
crimes,  154  ;  receives  a  check  at 
Stralsund,  154  ;  is  dismissed,  155  ; 
is  again  summoned  to  the  Emp>eror's 
aid,  and  raises  a  second  army,  X56  ; 
is  defeated  at  Lutzen,  156;  is 
murdered,  157.  ^ 

Wartburg,  Luther  at  the,  133, 

Wattignies,  battle  of,  195. 

Waterloo,  battle  of,  217. 

Weber,  370. 

Wedel,  General,  184. 

Weinsberg,  the  women  of,  73. 

Weissenburg,  battle  of,  260. 

Welau,  treaty  of,  163, 

Welf,  made  Duke  of  Bavaria,  64. 

Welfs,  the,  74. 

We:)ceslaus,  106,  107, 

Wergeld,  the,  6,  20. 

Westphalia,  the  Peace  of,  158. 

Widulcind,  resistance  of,  to  Charles 
the  Great,  33. 

Wieland,  221. 

William  of  Holland,  82,  94. 

William  I.,  of  Prussia,  mounts  the 
throne,  245 :  his  quarrel  with 
Parliament,  245  ;  signs  theCastein 
Convention,  248  ;  assumes  supreme 
command  in  the  war  with  Austria, 
253  ;  is  reconciled  to  Parliament, 
2:56 ;  his  action  with  respect  to 
French    demands,    25S ;    assumes 


supreme  command  in  the  war  with 

France,  25Q  ;  Na|K)leon  surrenden 

to,  262  ;  is  declared  Emperor,  365. 
William  HI.,  of  England,  166. 
William  IV.,  of  England,  337. 
Willibrord,  30. 
Willigis,  53. 
Wilfnth,  30. 
Winfrith,  30. 

Witchcraft,  believed  in,  161. 
Wittelsbach,  Otto  of,  77. 
Wladislaus,   King  of   Bohemia  and 

Hungary,  117. 
Wodan,  9. 

Wolf,  Christian  Freiherr  von,  220. 
Wolf,  269. 
Worms,  the  Concordat  of,  69 ;    th« 

Diet  of,   1495,    119 ;    the  Ijjet  of^ 

1521,  i3i. 
WSrth,  battle  of,  260. 
Wrangel,  (leneral,  157,  232. 
Wurmscr,  Marshal,  195,  197. 
Wurtembcrg,  the  Duke  of,  made  as 

Elector,  200. 
WyclifTe,    the  doctrines  of,    in   B» 

hernia,  109. 


Zach,  269. 

Zacharias,  Pope,  ?a 
Zahringen,  the  house  o^  tfk 
ZcUer,  268. 

Ziethen,  General,  z86» 
Zisca,  John,  no. 
Zomdorf,  battle  of,  xSib 
Zwmgli,  Ulrich,  137. 


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Fa  lais   Portuguez  ?  or.  Do  You  Speak  Portugue.se?     i6mo.     Boards...  50 

Fallais  Inglez  ?     or,  Do  You  Speak  English?  lamo.     Boards 50 

HEBREW. 

Deutsch,     Key  to  the  Pentateuch.     3  parts  (i  now  published).     Per  part.     150 
ruerst.     Hebrew  and  Chaldee  Lexicon.     8vo,     Half  morocco 909 

HENKY  HOLT  h  CO.,  Publishers,  New  York. 

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